Aids to Scoutmaster Ship

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PREFACE

The World Brotherhood edition of Aids toScoutmastership continues to be produced and madeavailable by Boy Scouts of Canada because it sets outclearly, in the Founder's own words, the principles,philosophy and basic program ideas underlying Scout-ing.

Shortly before the First World War, Baden-Powell devised and led a course for Scoutmasters. Toenable him to do so he wrote a series of notes on thetraining of boys through scouting. After the war itwas suggested to him that these notes might bepublished in book form. He revised them in the lightof the further experience gained and Aids to Scout-mastership was published in 1920.

B.-P. continued to review his material in aneffort to keep it up to date and understandable aspossible resulting in a revised edition in 1930. Afurther revision was made in 1944 when this WorldBrotherhood edition was published.

While the style, terminology and some of thedetailed content of this book may now be dated, theprinciples, philosophy and basic program ideas are asvalid and as important today as they ever have been.

As B.-P. says in his forword, "a man carries outsuggestions the more wholeheartedly when he under-stands their aim." We believe Aids to Scoutmaster-ship will help you to better understand Scouting.What is said in this book should be related directly toAim, Principles, Operating Policies and ProgramObjectives in By-Laws, Policies & Procedures and toprogram ideas set out in today's handbooks.

AIDS TO

SCOUTMASTERSHIPA Guidebook for Scoutmasters

On The Theory of Scout Training

LORD BADEN-POWELL OF GILWELL

Founder of the Boy Scout Movement

W O R L D B R O T H E R H O O D E D I T I O N

Published by

THE NATIONAL COUNCIL BOY SCOUTS OF CANADAOTTAWA

from plates the gift of THE BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA

1945



1.

CONTENTS

THE SCOUTMASTER 3His Qualities 3His Duty 4Loyalty to the Movement 5His Reward 6

THE BOY 7The Nature of the Boy 9Environment and Temptations 11Troop Headquarters and Camp 12How to Catch Our Boys 13

SCOUTING 15Scouting Is Simple 16The Aim of Scouting 16

The Four Branches of Scout Training . . . . 17The Activities of Scouting 18

The Scout Spirit 20The Patrol System 22

Patrol Leaders' Council-Court of Honour 23

Values of the Patrol System 24The Scout Uniform 24The Scoutmaster's Share 25

CHARACTER 27Importance of Character 27Why a Troop Should Not Exceed 32 28Chivalry and Fair Play 29Discipline 30Sense of Honour 31Self-Reliance 32Enjoyment of Life 33Development of Outlook: Reverence 36Self-Respect 39Loyalty 40

2. HEALTH AND STRENGTH 41Importance of Health 41Be Fit! 42Organised Games 43Physical Exercises 44Drill 45The Out-of-Doors 46

Camp Life 48Swimming, Boat-Rowing, Signalling 50Personal Hygiene 50

Cleanliness 50Food 50Temperance 51Continence 51Non-Smoking 53Walking the Tight Rope 53

Handicapped Scouts 54

3. HANDCRAFT AND SKILL 55Handicrafts and Hobbies 55Pioneering as a First Step 56Proficiency Badges (Merit Badges) 56Intelligence 58Self-Expression 59From Hobby to Career 60The Scoutmaster's Share 61Employment 61

4. SERVICE TO OTHERS 63Selfishness 63To Eradicate Selfishness 64The Good Turn Habit 64Service for the Community 65Ulterior Effect 67

TO SUM UP 68

Cover Drawing and Illustrations byLord Baden-Powell



FOREWORD

DON'T feel worried at the length of this book.Scouting is not an abstruse or difficult science: rather it

is a jolly game if you take it in the right light. At the same timeit is educative, and (like Mercy) it is apt to benefit him thatgiveth as well as him that receiveth.

The term "Scouting" has come to mean a system of trainingin citizenship, through games, for boys or girls.

The girls are the important people, because when the mothersof the nation are good citizens and women of character, they will

see to it that their sons are not deficient in these points. As thingsare, the training is needed for both sexes, and is imparted throughthe Boy Scouts and Girl Guides (Girl Scouts) Movements. Theprinciples are the same for both. It is only in the details that theyvary.

A. S. M. Hutchinson in one of his novels suggests that whatYouth needs is Background. Well, we have a Background to givethem in Scouting and Guiding, and it is the Background thatGod has provided for everybody—the open-air, happiness andusefulness.

Indeed, the Scoutmaster in introducing the boy to this, in-cidentally brings upon himself a share in that same happiness andusefulness. He finds himself doing a greater thing than possiblyhe foresaw in taking up the job, for he finds himself renderinga life-worth Service for Man and God.

You will find this book a disappointing one if you hope tofind in it a set of definite stepping-stones to complete knowledge.

I merely propose to state, as suggestive, the line which wehave found to be successful, and the reasons for it.

A man carries out suggestions the more wholeheartedly whenhe understands their aim.

So most of these pages will be taken up with the objects of the steps rather than with the details of the steps themselves.These can be filled in by the learner according to his own in-genuity, and in harmony with the local conditions under whichhe is working.

The Scoutmaster guides the boy in the spirit of an older brother.

THE SCOUTMASTER

AS A PRELIMINARY word of comfort to intending Scout-masters, I should like to contradict the usual misconception

that, to be a successful Scoutmaster, a man must be an Admir-able Crichton—a know-all. Not a bit of it.

He has simply to be a boy-man, that is: —

(1) He must have the boy spirit in him; and must be able toplace himself on a right plane with his boys as a first step.

(2) He must realise the needs, outlooks and desires of thedifferent ages of boy life.

(3) He must deal with the individual boy rather than withthe mass.

(4) He then needs to promote a corporate spirit among hisindividuals to gain the best results.

With regard to the first point, the Scoutmaster has to beneither schoolmaster nor commanding officer, nor pastor, norinstructor. All that is needed is the capacity to enjoy the out-of-doors, to enter into the boys' ambitions, and to find other menwho will give them instruction in the desired directions, whetherit be signalling or drawing, nature study or pioneering.

He has got to put himself on the level of the older brother,

The Scoutmaster 3



that is, to see things from the boy's point of view, and to leadand guide and give enthusiasm in the right direction. Like thetrue older brother he has to realise the traditions of the familyand see that they are preserved, even if considerable firmness isrequired. That is all. The Movement is a jolly fraternity, all the

jollier because in the game of Scouting you are doing a big thingfor others, you are combating the breeding of selfishness.

Regarding the second point, the various handbooks cover thesuccessive phases of adolescent life.

Thirdly, the business of the Scoutmaster—and a very interest-ing one it is—is to draw out each boy and find out what is inhim, and then to catch hold of the good and develop it to theexclusion of the bad. Ther e is five per cent of good even in theworst chara cter . The sport is to find it, and then to develop iton to an 80 or 90 per cent basis. This is educatio n instead of instruction of the young mind.

Fourth. In the Scout training the Patrol or gang systemgives the corporate expression of the individual training, whichbrings into practice all that the boy has been taught.

The Patrol System has also a great character-training valueif it is used aright . It leads each boy to see that he has someindivi dual respons ibility for the good of his Patr ol. It leads eachPatrol to see that it has definite responsibility for the good of the Troop. Throu gh it the Scoutm aster is able to pass on not onlyhis instruction but his ideas as to the moral outlook of his Scouts.Through it the Scouts themselves gradually learn that they haveconside rable say in wha t their Troop does. It is the Patro l Systemthat makes the Troop, and all Scouting for that matter, a realco-operative effort.

The Scoutmaster's Duty

Success in training the boy largely depends upon the Scout-master's own personal example. It is easy to become the heroas well as the elder brot her of the boy. We are apt, as we growup, to forget what a store of hero worship is in the boy.

The Scoutmaster who is a hero to his boys holds a powerfullever to their development, but at the same time brings a greatrespons ibility on himself. They are quick enough to see the small-est characteristic about him, whether it be a virtue or a vice.His mannerisms become theirs, the amount of courtesy he shows,his irritations, his sunny happiness, or his impatient glower, hiswilling self-discipline or his occasional moral lapses—all are notonly noticed, but adopted by his followers.

4 The Scoutmaste r

Therefore, to get them to carry out the Scout Law and allthat underlies it, the Scoutmaster himself should scrupulouslycar ry out its professions in every detail of his life. With scarcelya word of instruction his boys will follow him.

The Scoutmaster's job is like golf, or scything, or fly-fishing.If you "press" you don't get there, at least not with anything likethe exte nt you do by a ligh t-he art ed effortless swing. But youhave got to swing. It's no use stan ding still. It is one thing orthe other, either progress or relax. Let us progress—and with asmile on.

Loyalty to the Movement

Let the Scoutmaster remember that in addition to his dutyto his boys he has a duty also to the Movement as a whole. Ouraim in making boys into good citizens is partly for the benefitof the country, that it may have a virile trusty race of citizenswhose amity and sense of "playing the game" will keep it unitedinternally and at peace with its neighbours abroad.

Charged with the duty of teaching self-abnegation and dis-cipline by their own practice of it, Scoutmasters must necessarilybe above petty personal feeling, and must be large-minded enoughto subject their own personal views to the higher policy of thewhole. Theirs is to teach their boys to "pla y the game ," each inhis place like bricks in a wall, by doing the same themselves.Each has his allotted sphere of work, and the better he devoteshimself to that, the better his Scouts will respond to his training.Then it is only by looking to the higher aims of the Movement,or to the effects of measures ten years hence that one can seedetails of to-day in their proper proportion.

Where a man cannot conscientiously take the line required,his one manly course is to put it straight to his Commissioner orto Headquarters, and if we cannot meet his views, then to leavethe work. He goes into it in the first place with his eyesopen, and it is sc arcely fair if af terwa rds, be cause he findsthe details do not suit him, he complains that it is the fault of theExecutive.

Fortunately, in our Movement, by decentralisation and givinga free hand to the local authorities, we avoid much of the redtape which has been the cause of irritation and complaint in somany other organisations.

We are also fortunate in having a body of Scoutmasters whoare large-minded in their outlook and in their loyalty to theMovement as a whole.

The Scoutmaster 5



A Scoutmaster's Reward

A man dared to tell me once that he was the happiest manin the world! I had to tell him of one who was still happier—myself.

You need not suppose that either of us in attaining thishappiness had never had difficulties to contend with. Just theopposite.

It is the satisfaction of having successfully faced difficultiesand borne pin-pricks that gives completeness to the pleasure of having overcome them.

Don't expect your life to be a bed of roses; there would be nofun in it if it were.

So, in dealing with the Scouts, you are bound to meet with

disappointments and setbacks. Be patient: more people ruintheir work or careers through want of patience than do so throughdrink or other vices. You will have to bear patiently with irrit at-ing criticisms and red tape bonds to some extent but your rewardwill come.

The satisfaction which comes of having tried to do one's dutyat the cost of self-denial, and of having developed characters inthe boys which will give them a different status for life, bringssuch a reward as cannot well be set down in writing. The fact of having worked to prevent the recurrence of those evils which,if allowed to run on, would soon be rotting our youth, gives aman the solid comfort that he has done something, at any rate,for his country, however humble may be his position.

This is the spirit with which Scoutmasters and Commissioners,Committeemen, instructors, organisers and secretaries—the word"Scouter" describes them all—work in the Boy Scout Movement.

The credit for the organisation and the spread of the ScoutMovement is due to this army of voluntary workers. Here wehave remarkable—if silent—evidence of the fine patriotic spiritthat lies beneath the surface of most nations. These men give uptheir time and energies, and in many cases their money as well,to the work of organising the training of boys, without any ideaof reward or praise for what they are doing. They do it for thelove of their country and their kind.

6 The Scoutmaster

Members of the Scouting family: Cub, Scout and Rover Scout.

THE BOY

THE FIRST STEP towards success in training your boy is toknow something about boys in general and then about this

boy in particular.Dr. Saleeby, in an address to the Ethical Society in London,

said: "The first requisite for a successful teacher is knowledgeof the nature of the boy. The boy or girl is not a small editionof a man or woman, not a piece of blank paper on which theteacher should write, but every child has his own peculiar curi-osity, his inexperience, a normal mysterious frame of mind whichneeds to be tactfully helped, encouraged and moulded or modifiedor even suppressed."

It is well to recall, so far as possible, what your ideas werewhen a boy yourself, and you can then much better understand hisfeelings and desires.

The following qualities in the boy have to be taken intoconsideration: —

Humour. —It must be remembered that a boy is naturallyfull of humour; it may be on the shallow side, but he can alwaysappreciate a joke and see the funny side of things. And this atonce gives the worker with boys a pleasant and bright side to

The Boy 7



his work and enables him to become the cheery companion, in-stead of the taskmaster, if he only joins in the fun of it.

Courage. —The average boy generally manages to have pluck as well. He is not by nature a grumbler, though later on he maybecome one, when his self-respect has died out of him and whenhe has been much in the company of "grousers."

Confidence. —A boy is generally supremely confident in hisown powers. Therefore, he dislikes being treated as a child andbeing told to do things or how to do them. He would much rathertry for himself, even though it may lead him into blunders, butit is just by making mistakes that a boy gains experience andmakes his character.

Sharpness. —A boy is generally as sharp as a needle. It is easy

to train him in matters appertaining to observation and noticingthings and deducing their meaning.Love of Excitement. —The town boy is generally more un-

settled than his country brothers by the excitements of the town,whether they are "a passing fire engine, or a good fight betweentwo of his neighbours." He cannot stick at a job for more thana month or two because he wants change.

Responsiveness. —When a boy finds somebody who takes aninterest in him he responds and follows where he is led, and it ishere that hero-worship comes in as a great force for helping theScoutmaster.

Loyalty. —This is a feature in a boy's character that mustinspire boundless hope. Boys are usually loyal friends to eachother, and thus friendliness comes almost naturally to a boy. Itis the one duty that he understands. He may appear selfish out-wardly, but, as a general rule, he is very willing under the surfaceto be helpful to others, and that is where our Scout trainingfinds good soil to work upon.

If one considers and studies these different attributes in theboy one is in a far better position for adapting the training to suithis different propensities. Such study is the first step to makinga success of the training. I had the pleasure, during one singleweek, of coming across three boys in different centres who werepointed out to me as having been incorrigible young blackguardsand hooligans until they came under the influence of Scouting.Their respective Scoutmasters had, in each case, found out thegood points which underlay the bad ones in them, and havingseized upon these had put the boys on to jobs which suited theirpeculiar temperaments; and there are now these three, fine

8 The Boy

hulking lads, each of them doing splendid work, entirely trans-formed in character from their old selves. It was worth the troubleof having organised the Troops just to have had these singlesuccesses.

Mr. Casson, writing in the magazine Teachers' World, thusdescribes that complicated work of Nature—the boy: —

"Judging from my own experience, I would say that boys havea world of their own—a world that they make for themselves;

Remember that the boy, on join-ing, wants to begin Scoutingright away; so don't dull hiskeenness by too much prelim-inary explanation at first. Meethis wants by games and Scout-ing practices, and instill ele-mentary details bit by bit after-wards as you go along.

and neither the teacher nor the lessons are admitted to this world.A boy's world has its own events and standards and code andgossip and public opinion.

"In spite of teachers and parents, boys remain loyal to theirown world. They obey their own code, although it is quite adifferent code to the one that is taught to them at home and in

the schoolroom. They gladly suffer martyrdom at the hands of uncomprehending adults, rather than be false to their own code."The code of the teacher, for instance, is in favour of silence

and safety and decorum. The code of the boys is diametricallyopposite. It is in favour of noise and risk and excitement.

"Fun, fighting, and feeding! These are the three indispen-sable elements of the boy's world. These are basic. They arewhat boys are in earnest about; and they are not associated withteachers nor schoolbooks.

"According to public opinion in Boydom, to sit for four hoursa day at a desk indoors is a wretched waste of time and daylight.Did anyone ever know a boy—a normal healthy boy, who beggedhis father to buy him a desk? Or did anyone ever know a boy,

The Boy 9



who was running about outdoors, go and plead with his motherto be allowed to sit down in the drawing room?

"Certainly not. A boy is not a desk animal. He is not asitting-down animal. Neither is he a pacifist nor a believer in'safety first,' nor a book-worm, nor a philosopher.

"He is a boy—God bless him—full to the brim of fun andfight and hunger and daring mischief and noise and observationand excitement. If he is not, he is abnormal.

"Let the battle go on between the code of the teachers andthe code of the boys. The boys will win in the future as theyhave in the past. A few will surrender and win the scholarships,but the vast majority will persist in rebellion and grow up to bethe ablest and noblest men in the nation.

"Is it not true, as a matter of history, that Edison, the in-ventor of a thousand patents, was sent home by his school teacherwith a note saying he was 'too stupid to be taught'?

"Is it not true that both Newton and Darwin, founders of thescientific method, were both regarded as blockheads by theirschool teachers?

"Are there not hundreds of such instances, in which the dufferof the classroom became useful and eminent in later life? Anddoesn't this prove that our present methods fail in developingthe aptitudes of boys?

"Is it not possible to treat boys as boys? Can we not adaptgrammar and history and geography and arithmetic to the require-ments of the boy's world? Can we not interpret our adult wisdominto the language of boyhood?

"Is not the boy right, after all, in maintaining his own codeof justice and achievement and adventure?

"Is he not putting action before learning, as he ought to do?Is he not really an amazing little worker, doing things on his own,for lack of intelligent leadership?

"Would it not be vastly more to the point if the teachers were,for a time, to become the students and to study the marvelousboy-life which they are at present trying vainly to curb andrepress?

"Why push against the stream, when the stream, after all,is running in the right direction?

"Is it not time for us to adapt our futile methods and tobring them into harmony with the facts? Why should we persistin saying dolefully, 'boys will be boys,' instead of rejoicing in themarvelous energy and courage and initiative of boyhood? Andwhat task can be nobler and more congenial to a true teacher

10 The Boy

than to guide the wild forces of boy nature cheerily along intopaths of social service?"

Environment and TemptationsAs I have said, the first step to success is to know your boy,

but the second step is to know his home. It is only when you knowwhat his environment is when he is away from the Scouts thatyou can really tell what influences to bring to bear upon him.

Where the sympathy and support of the boy's parents aresecured, where the parents have been brought into a mutualpartnership with a fuller interest in the working of the Troopand the aim of the Movement, the task of the Scoutmaster be-comes proportionately light.

Occasionally, in the home, there may be evil influences toovercome. In addition there are other temptations to the badwhich the instructor of the boy must be ready to contend with.But, if he is forewarned, he can probably devise his methods sothat the temptations fail to exercise an evil influence on his lads;and in that way their character is developed on the best lines.

One of the powerful temptations is that of motion pictures.Motion pictures have undoubtedly an enormous attraction forboys, and some people are constantly cudgelling their brains howto stop it. But it is one of those things which would be verydifficult to stop even if it were altogether desirable. The point,rather, is how to utilise films to the best advantage for our ends.On the principle of meeting any difficulty by siding with it andedging it in one's own direction, we should endeavour to seewhat there is of value in motion pictures and should then utilisethem for the purpose of training the boy. No doubt it can be apowerful instrument for evil by suggestion, if not properly super-

vised; but steps have been taken, and continue to be taken, toensure a proper censorship. But, as it can be a power for evil,so it can just as well be made a power for good. There areexcellent films now on natural history and nature study, whichgive a child a far better idea of the processes of nature than itsown observation can do, and certainly far better than any amountof lessons on the subject. History can be taught through the eye.There are dramas of the pathetic or heroic kind, and others of genuine fun, humour, and laughter. Many of them bring whatis bad into condemnation and ridicule. There is no doubt thatthis teaching through the eye can be adapted so as to have awonderfully good effect through the children's own inclinationand interest in the "cinema palace." We have to remember too that

The Boy 11



motion pictures have the same influence on the schools which arenow turning them to good account. In Scouting we cannot do thisto the same extent, but we can utilise them as a spur to our ownendeavour s. We have to make our Scouting sufficiently attrac tiveto attract the boy, no matter what other counter-attractionsthere may be.

Juvenile smoking and its detriment to health; gamblingand all the dishonesty that it brings in its train; the evils of drink; of loafing with girls; uncleanness, etc., can only be cor-rected by the Scoutmaster who knows the usual environment of his lads.

It cannot be done by forbidding or punishment, but by sub-stituting something at least equally attractive but good in its

effects.Juvenile crime is not naturally born in the boy, but is largelydue either to the spirit of adventure that is in him, to his ownstupidity, or to his lack of discipline, according to the nature of the individual.

Natural lying is another very prevalent fault amongst lads;and, unfortunate ly, a prevailing disease all over the world. Youmeet it particularly amongst uncivilised tribes, as well as inthe civilised countries. Truth speaking, and its consequent eleva-tion of a man into being a reliable authority, makes all the dif-ference in his character and in the character of the nation. There-fore, it is incumbent upon us to do all we can to raise the toneof honour and truth speaking amongst the lads.

Troop Headquarters and Camp

The main antidote to a bad environment is naturally the

substitution of a good one, and this is best done through the TroopHead quarte rs and the Scout Camp. By Headqua rters I do notmean half-an-hour's drill once a week in a big schoolroom lentfor the occasion—which has so often appeared to be the aim of those dealing with boys—but a real place which the boys feelis their own, even though it may be a cellar or an attic; someplace to which they can resort every evening, if need be, andfind congenial work and amusement, plenty of varied activityand a bright and happy atmosphere . If a Scoutmaster can onlyarrange this, he will have done a very good work in providingthe right environment for some of his lads which will be the bestantidote for the poison that otherwise would creep into theirminds and characters.

Then the camp (and this should be as frequent as possibly

12 The Boy

can be managed) is a still further and even more potent antidotethan the Head quarte rs. The open and breezy atmospher e andthe comradeship of continued association under canvas, in thefield, and round the camp fire, breathes the very best of spiritamongst the lads, and gives the Scoutmaster a far better oppor-tunity than any other of getting hold of his boys and of impress-ing his personality upon them.

How to Catch Our Boys

I like to think of a man trying to get boys to come under goodinfluence as a fisherman wishful to catch fish.

If a fisherman bait his hook with the kind of food that helikes himself it is probable that he will not catch many—certainlynot the shy, game kind of fish. He therefore uses as bait the

food that the fish likes.So with boys; if you try to preach to them what you con-sider elevating matte r, you won't catch them. Any obvious"goody-goody" will scare away the more spirited among them,and those are the ones you wan t to get hold of. The only way

What the Scoutmaster does, hisboys will do. The Scoutmasteris reflected in his Scouts. Fromthe self-sacrifice and patriotismof their Scoutmaster, Scouts in-herit the practice of voluntary

self-sacrifice a n d patrioticservice.

is to hold out something that really attracts and interests them.And I think you will find that Scouting does this.

You can afterwards season it with what you want them tohave.

To get a hold on your boys you must be their friend; bu tdon't be in too great a hurry at first to gain this footing untilthey have got over their shyne ss of you. Mr. F. D. How, in his

Book oj the Child, sums up the right course in the followingstory: —

The Boy 13



"A man whose daily walk led him down a certain dingystreet saw a tiny boy with grimy face and badly-developed limbsplaying with a banana-skin in the gutter . The man nodded tohim—the boy shrank away in terror. Next day the man noddedagain. The boy had decided there was nothing to be afraid of,and spat at the man. Next day the little fellow only stared. Theday after he shouted 'Hi!' as the man went on. In time thelittle fellow smiled back at the greeting which he now began toexpect. Finally, the triumph was complete when the boy—a tinychap—was waiting at the corner and seized the man's fingers inhis dirty little fist. It was a dismal street, but it became one of the very brightest spots in all that man's life."

14 The Boy

Vigorous outdoor living is the key to the spirit of Scouting.

SCOUTING

SCOUTING IS A GAME for boys, under the leadership of boys,in which elder brothers can give their younger brothers

healthy environment and encourage them to healthy activitiessuch as will help them to develop CITIZENSHIP.

Its strongest appeal is through Nature Study and Woodcraft.It deals with the individual, not with the Company. It raises in-tellectual as well as purely physical or purely moral qualities.

At first it used to aim for these ends—now by experience we

know that, where properly handled, it gains them.Perhaps the best exponent of the aim and methods of Scout-ing has been Dean James E. Russell, of Teachers College, Colum-bia University, New York. He writes thus:

"The program of the Boy Scouts is the man's job cut downto boy's size. It appeals to the boy not merely because he is aboy, but because he is a man in the making . . . The Scouting pro-gram does not ask of the boy anything that the man does not do;but step by step it takes him from the place where he is untilhe reaches the place where he would be . . .

"It is not the curriculum of Scouting that is the most strikingfeature, but it is the method. As a systematic scheme of leadingboys to do the right thing and to inculcate right habits it is almost

Scouting 15



ideal. In the doing, two things stand out—the one is that habitsare fixed; the other is that it affords an opportunity for initiative,self-control, self-reliance, and self-direction.

"In the development of initiative Scouting depends not merelyon its program of work for the boy, but in a marvelous way italso utilises its machinery of administra tion. In the admi nistra -tive scheme a splendid opportunity is given to break away fromany incrusting method. It comes about in the Patrol and in theTroop. It teaches the boys to work together in teams. It securesco-operative effort for a common end; that is a democratic thingin and of itself . . .

"By encouraging your Scouts in a healthy, cheery, and notin a sanctimonious looking-for-a-reward spirit to do Good Turnsas a first step and to do service for the community as a develop-

ment, you can do more for them even than by encouraging theirproficiency or their discipline or their knowledge, because youare teaching them not how to get a living so much as how to live."

Scouting is Simple

To an outsider Scouting must at first sight appear to be avery complex matter, and many a man is probably put off frombecoming a Scoutmaster because of the enormous number andvariety of things that he thinks he would have to know in orderto teach his boys. But it need not be so, if the man will onlyrealise the following points:—•

1. The aim of Scouting is quite a simple one.The Scoutmaster gives to the boy the ambition and desireto learn for himself by suggesting to him activities whichattract him, and which he pursues till he, by experience,does them aright. (Such activities are suggested in Scout-ing for Boys).The Scoutmaster works through his Patrol Leaders.

2.

3.

THE AIM OF SCOUTING

The aim of the Scout training is to improve the standard of our future citizenhood, especially in Character and Health; toreplace Self with Service, to make the lads individually efficient,morally and physically, with the object of using that efficiencyfor service for their fellow-men.

Citizenship has been defined briefly as "active loyalty to thecommunity." In a free country it is easy, and not unusual, toconsider oneself a good citizen by being a law-abiding man, doingyour work and expressing your choice in politics, sports, or activi-

16 Scouting

ANALYSIS OF THE SCOUT SCHEME OF

TRAINING FOR

1. CHARACTER

QUALITIESAIMED FOR

CivicFair Play.Respect for the

Rights of Others.

Discipline.Leadership.Responsibility.MoralHonor.Chivalry.Self-Reliance.Courage.Capacity for

Enjoyment.Higher Tone of

Thought.Religion.

Reverence.Self-Respect.Loyalty.

THROUGHPRACTICE OF

Patrol Work.Team Games.Court of Honor.

(PatrolLeaders'Council)

Scout Law andPromise.

Scout Work andActivities.

Appreciation of Nature.

Nature Loreand Study.

Astronomy.Kindness to

Animals.Service to

Others.(see below)

3. HANDCRAFT AND SKILLQUALITIESAIMED FOR

Technical Skill.

Inventiveness.

IntellectualObservation.Deduction.

THROUGHPRACTICE OF

Scoutcraft.Camp

Expedients.Pioneering.Rewards by

Badges, inmany formsof Handicraft.

Hobbies.Woodcraft.

Self-Expression.Tracking.

CITIZENSHIP

2. HEALTH

QUALITIESAIMED FOR

Health

Strength

4. SERVICE

QUALITIESAIMED FOR

Unselfishness.

Civic Duty.Patriotism.

Service forCountry.

Service forHumanity.

Service forGod.

i

AND STRENGTH

THROUGHPRACTICE OF

Responsibilityfor Personaln A l iy.lieaitn.

Hygiene.Temperance.Con 11 non c p

Camping.

PhysicalDevelopment.

Games.Swimming.Hiking.Climbing and

NaturalActivities.

TO OTHERS

THROUGHPRACTICE OF

Scout Law andPromise.

Good Turns.First Aid.Life Saving.Firemanship.Accident Corps.Hospital

Assistance.Other Commun-

ity Service.



ties, "leaving it to George" to worry about the nation's welfare.This is passiv e citizenship. But passive citizenship is not enoughto uphold in the world the virtues of freedom, justice, and honour.Only active citizenship will dp.

The Four Branches of Scout Training

To accomplish the aim of training for active citizenship, wetake up the following four branches which are essential in build-ing up good citizens, and we inculcate them from within insteadof from without:

Character —which we teach throu gh: the Patrol System, theScout Law, Scout lore, woodcraft, responsibility of the PatrolLeader, team games and the resourcefulness involved in camp work.

This includes the realisation of God the Creator through His works;the appreciation of beauty in Nature; and through the love of plants or animals with which outdoor life has made one familiar.

Health and Strength —Through games, exercises, and knowl-edge of personal hygiene and diet.

Handcraft and Skill —Occasionally through indoor activities,but more specially through pioneering, bridge-building, camp ex-pedients, self-expression through the arts, which all tend to makeefficient workmen.

Service to Others— The carrying into daily life of the practiceof religion by "good turns," dealing with quite small good actionsas well as with community service, accidents, life-saving.

The details of these four branches are shown on page 17and described in Part II of this book.

THE ACTIVITIES OF SCOUTING

By the term "Scouting" is meant the work and attributes of back-woodsmen, explorers, hunters, seamen, airmen, pioneers andfrontiersmen.

In giving the elements of these to boys we supply a systemof games and practices which meets their desires and instincts,and is at the same time educative.

From the boys' point of view Scouting puts them into fra-ternity-gangs which is their natural organisation, whether forgames, mischief, or loafing; it gives them a smart dress andequipment; it appeals to their imagination and romance; and itengages them in an active, open-air life.

From the parents' point of view it gives physical health anddevelopment; it teaches energy, resourcefulness, and handicrafts;

18 Scouting

it puts into the lad discipline, pluck, chivalry, and patriotism; ina word, it develops "character," which is more essential thananything else to a lad for making his way in life.

The Scout training attracts boys of all classes, high and low,rich and poor, and even catches the physically defective, deaf mutes, and blind. It inspire s the desire to learn. The principleon which Scouting works is that the boy's ideas are studied, andhe is encouraged to educate himself instead of being instructed.

It gives a good start in technical training through badges for

Scouting is a jolly game in theout of doors, where boy-menand boys can go adventuringtogether as older and youngerbrothers, picking up healthand happiness, handicraft andhelpfulness.

proficiency in various kinds of hobbies and handicrafts, in addi-tion to the actual Scouts' Badges of First and Second Class, testi-fying to their capabilities in swimming, pioneering, cooking,woodsmanship, and other points of manliness and handiness. Theobject of offering so many as we do at an elementary standard isto draw out the boys of every type to try their hand at variouskinds of work, and the watchful Scoutmaster can very quicklyrecognise the particular bent bf each boy and encourage it accord-ingly. And that is the best road towards expanding his individualcharacter and starting a boy on a successful career.

Moreover, we encourage personal responsibility in the boyfor his own physical development and health: and we trust inhis honour and expect him to do a Good Turn to someone everyday.

Where the Scoutmaster is himself a bit of a boy, and cansee it all from the boy's point of view, he can, if he is imagina-tive, invent new activities, with frequent variations, to meet theboys' thirst for novelty. Note the theatr es. If they find that aplay does not appeal to the public, they don't go on hammering

Scouting 19



away with it in the hope that it will in the end do so; they takeit off and put on some new attraction.

Boys can see adventure in a dirty old duck-puddle, and if the Scout mas ter is a boy- man he can see it too. It does notrequire great expense or apparatus to devise new ideas; the boysthemselves can often help with suggestions.

A further way of discovering activities that will appeal to theboys is for the Scoutmaster to save his brains by using his ears.

When in war-time a soldier-scout is out at night and wantsto gain information of the enemy's moves, he does so to a largeextent by listening. Similarly, when a Scoutmaster is in the dark as to what is the inclination or the character of his boys, he can,to a great extent, get it by listening.

In listening, he will gain a close insight into the character of each boy and a realisation of the way in which he can best beinterested.

So, too, in the Patrol Leaders' Council debates and camp firetalks; if you make listening and observation your particular occu-pation, you will gain much more information from your boys thanyou can put into them by your own talk.

Also, when visiting the parents, don't go with the idea of impressing on them the value of Scouting so much as to gleanfrom them what are their ideas of training their boys and whatthey expect of Scouting or where they find it deficient.

Generally speaking, when short of ideas don't impose on yourScouts' activities which you think they ought to like; but find outfrom them by listening or by questioning which activities appealmost to them, and then see how far you can get these going—that is, if they are likely to be beneficial to the boys.

Where a Troop resounds with jolly laughter, and enjoys suc-

cess in competitions, and the fresh excitements of new adventures,there won't be any loss of members through boredom.

The Scout Spirit

The underlying feature is the spirit of the Movement, andthe key that unlocks this spirit is the romance of Woodcraft andNature Lore.

Where is there a boy, or for the matter of that a grown-upman, even in these materialistic times to whom the call of thewild and the open road does not appeal?

Maybe it is a primitive instinct—anyway it is there. Withthat key a great door may be unlocked, if it is only to admit freshair and sunshine into lives that were otherwise grey.

20 Scouting

But generally it can do more than this.The heroes of the wild, the frontiersmen and explorers, the

rovers of the sea, the airmen of the clouds are Pied Pipers to theboys.

Where they lead the boys will follow, and these will dance totheir tune when it sings the song of manliness and pluck, of adventure and high endeavour, of efficiency and skill, of cheerfulsacrifice of self for others.

There's meat in this for the boy; there's soul in it.Watch that lad going down the street, his eyes are looking

far out. Is his vision across the prairie or over the gre y-bac kedseas? At any rate, it isn't here. Don't I know it!

Have you never seen the buffaloes roaming in KensingtonGardens? And can't you see the smoke from the Sioux Lodgesunde r the shadow of the Albert Memorial? I have seen them ther ethese many years.

Through Scouting the boy has now the chance to deck him-self in a frontier kit as one of the great Brotherhood of Back-woodsmen. He can track and follow signs, he can signal, he can

The vision of the boy is across the prairie and the seas. In Scoutinghe feels himself akin to the Indian, the Pioneer, the Backwoodsman.

light his fire and build his shack and cook his grub. He can turnhis hand to many things in pioneer- and camp-craft.

His unit is the natural gang of the boy, led by its own boyleader.

He may be one of a herd, but he has his own entity. He getsto know the joy of life through the out-of-doors.

Then there is a spiritual side.Through sips of nature lore imbibed in woodland hikes the

puny soul grows up and looks around. The outdoors is par Scouting 21



excellence the school for observation and for realising the wondersof a wondrous universe.

It opens to the mind appreciation of the beautiful that liesbefore it day by day. It reveals to the city youngster that thestars are there beyond the city chimney-pots, and the sunset cloudsare gleaming in their glory far above the roof of the "cinema"theatre.

The study of nature brings into a harmonious whole thequestion of the infinite, the historic, and the microscopic as partof the Great Crea tor's work. And in these, sex and reproductionplay an honoured part.

Scoutcraft is a means through which the veriest hooligancan be brought to higher thought and to the elements of faith inGod; and, coupled with the Scout's obligation to do a Good Turnevery day, it gives the base of Duty to God and to Neighbour onwhich the parent or pastor can build with greater ease the formof belief that is desired.

"You can dress a lad as Cowboy, as a Tommy or a Jack,You can drill him till he looks as smart as paint,But it does not always follow when you come to scratch his back That he's really either hero or a saint."

It is the spirit within, not the veneer without that does it.And the spirit is there in every boy when you get him, only

it has to be discovered and brought to light.The Scout Promise (or Oath) to carry out, on his honour,

as far as in him lies, and the Scout Law is our binding dis-ciplinary force, and with ninety-nine out of a hundred it pays.The boy is not governed by DON'T, but is led on by DO. The

Scout Law is devised as a guide to his actions rather than asrepressive of his faults. It merely states wh at is good form andexpected of a Scout.

THE PATROL SYSTEM

The Patrol System is the one essential feature in whichScout training differs from that of all other organisations, andwhere the System is properly applied, it is absolutely bound tobrin g success. It cannot help itself!

The formation of the boys into Patrols of from six to eightand training them as separate units each under its own responsibleleader is the key to a good Troop.

The Patrol is the unit of Scouting always, whether for work or for play, for discipline or for duty.

22 Scouting

An invaluable step in character training is to put respon-sibility on to the individual. This is immediately gained in appoint-ing a Patrol Leader to responsible command of his Patrol. It isup to him to take hold of and to develop the qualities of eachboy in his Patrol. It sounds a big order, but in practice it works.

Then, through emulation and competition between Patrols,you produce a Patrol spirit which is eminently satisfactory, sinceit raises the tone among the boys and develops a higher stand-ard of efficiency all round. Each boy in the Pa trol realises t hat

The best progress is made inthose Troops where power andresponsibility are really putinto the hands of the PatrolLeaders. This is the secret of success in Scout Training.

he is in himself a responsible unit and that the honour of hisgroup depends in some degree on his own ability in playing thegame.

Patrol Leaders' Council—Court of Honour*

The Patrol Leaders' Council and Court of Honour is an impor-tan t part of the Patrol System. It is a standing committee which,under the guidance of the Scoutmaster, settles the affairs of the Troop, both administrati ve and disciplinary. It develops inits members self-respect, ideals of freedom coupled with a senseof responsibility and respect for authority, while it gives practicein procedure such as is invaluable to the boys individually andcollectively as future citizens.

The Patrol Leaders' Council takes charge of routine mattersand the management of such affairs as Troop entertainments,sports , etc. In this Council it is often found convenien t to admi tthe Seconds (Assistant Patrol Leaders) also as members, and,

•The term "Court of Honor," in the Boy Scouts of America, denotes the function at whicha Scout is awarded Merit Badges or Badges of Rank.

Scouting 23



while getting their help, this incidentally gives them experienceand practice in committee procedure. The Court of Honour, on theother hand, is composed solely of Patrol Lead ers. The Court of Honour, as its name implies, has a rather exceptional mission, suchas dealing with cases of discipline and questions of awards.

Values of the Patrol System

It is important that the Scoutmaster recognise the extra-ordinar y value which he can get out of the Patrol System. It isthe best guarantee for permanent vitality and success for theTroop. It takes a great deal of minor routine work off the shoul -ders of the Scoutmaster.

But first and foremost: The Patrol is the character school forthe individual. To the Patrol Leader it gives practise in Respon-sibility and in the qualities of Leadership. To the Scouts it givessubordination of self to the interests of the whole, the elementsof self-denial and self-control mvolved in the team spirit of co-operation and good comradeship.

But to get first-class results from this system you have togive the boy leaders real free-handed responsibility—if you onlygive part ial responsibility you will only get partial results. Themain object is not so much saving the Scoutmaster trouble as togive responsibility to the boy, since this is the very best of allmeans for developing character.

The Scoutmaster who hopes for success must not only studywhat is written about the Patrol System and its methods, butmust put into practice the suggestions he reads. It is the doing of things that is so important, and only by constant trial can experi-ence be gained by his Pat rol Leade rs and Scouts. The more hegives them to do, the more will they respond, the more strengthand character will they achieve.

THE SCOUT UNIFORM

I have often said, "I don't care a fig whether a Scout wearsa uniform or not so long as his heart is in his work and he carriesout the Scout Law ." But the fact is that the re is har dly a Scoutwho does not wear uniform if he can afford to buy it.

The spirit prompts him to it.The same rule applies naturally to those who carry on the

Scout Movement—the Scoutmasters and Commissioners; there isno obligation on them to wear uniform if they don't like it. Atthe same time, they have in their positions to think of othersrather than of themselves.

24 Scouting

Personally, I put on uniform, even if I have only a Patrolto inspect, because I am certain that it raises the moral tone of the boys. It height ens their estimation of their uniform whenthey see it is not beneath a grown man to wear it; it heightenstheir estimation of themselves when they find themselves takenseriously by men who also count it of importance to be in thesame brotherhood with them.

Smartness in uniform and correctness in detail may seem asmall matter, but has its value in the development of self-respect,and means an immense deal to the reputation of the Movementamong outsiders who judge by what they see.

It is largely a matte r of example. Show me a slackly-dressedTroop and I can "Sherlock" a slackly-dressed Scoutmaster. Think

of it, when you are fitting on your uniform or putting that finalsaucy cock to your hat.You are the model to your boys and your smartness will reflect

itself in them.

THE SCOUTMASTER'S SHARE

The principles of Scouting are all in the right directio n. Thesuccess in their application depends on the Scoutmaster and howhe applies them. My present object is to endeavour to help theScoutmaster in this particular: First, by showing the object of the Scout training; secondly, by suggesting methods by which itmay be carried out.

Many a Scoutmaster would probably desire I should give himail particulars in detail. But this would in reality be an impos-sibility, because what suits one particular Troop or one kind of boy, in one kind of place, will not suit another within a mile of it,much less those scattered over the world and existing undertotally different conditions. Yet one can give a certain amou ntof general suggestion, and Scoutmasters in applying this can

judge for themselves far best which details are most likely tobring about success in their own particular Troops.

But before going into details, once more let me repea t: Donot be appalled by any imaginary magnitude of the task. It willdisappear when once you see the aim. You have then only tokeep that always before you and adapt the details to suit the end.

As in Peveril of the Peak: "It matters not much whetherwe actually achieve our highest ideals so be it that they arehigh."

Occasionally, difficulties may loom up so as almost to blotout the radiant possibilities. But it is comforting to remem ber

Scouting 25



that they are generally out of their proper proportion and subsideas you approach them. Take comfort from the old negro's rhyme:

"You look 'way down 'long de railroad track And you scratch yer crown; and your brain yer rack,By gum, y'say, How de train don' guineTo make its way where de two rails jine?

"On flies de train—for it don't appear,To bodder de brain ob de engineer.And y'sure to find wid de nearer sightDat de rails ain't jined and de track's all right.

"Jes' so we all, in de future farSee de path get small, how we guine past dar?

But we 'proach de place and it wider seemAnd we fin' dere's space for a ten-mule team!"

(Saturday Morning Post)

26 Scouting

The code of the knight is still the code of the gentleman today.

I. CHARACTER

NATION owes its success, not so much to its strength inarmaments, as to the amount of character in its citizens."

"For a man to be successful in life, character is more essentialthan erudition."

So character is of first value whether for a nation or for theindividual. But if character is to make a man's career for him,it ought to be developed in him before he starts out; while he isstill a boy and receptive. Character cannot be drilled into a boy.The germ of it is already in him, and needs to be drawn outand expanded. How?

Character is very generally the result of environment or sur-roundings. For example, take two small boys, twins if you like.Teach them the same lessons in school, but give them entirelydifferent surroundings, companions, and homes outside the school.Put one under a kindly, encouraging mother, among clean andstraight playfellows, where he is trusted on his honour to carryout rules of life and so on. On the other hand, take the secondboy and let him loaf in a filthy home, among foul-mouthed, thiev-ing, discontented companions. Is he likely to grow up with thesame amount of character as his twin?

There are thousands of boys being wasted daily through

Character 27



being left to become characterless, and therefore, useless wasters,a misery to themselves and an eyesore and a danger to the nation.

They could be saved if only the right surroundings or environ-ment were given to them at the receptive time of their lives. Andthere are many thousands of others who may not be placed onquite so low a level (for there are wasters in every class of life),but who would be all the better men and more valuable to thecountry and more satisfactory to themselves if they could be per-suaded, at the right age, to develop their characters.

Here, then, lies the most important object in the Boy Scouttraining—to educate; not to instruct, mind you, but to educate,that is, to draw out the boy to learn for himself, of his own desire,the things that tend to build up character in him.

One Reason Why a Troop Should not Exceed 32The number in a Troop should preferably not exceed thirty-

two. I suggest this number because in training boys myself I havefound that sixteen was about as many as I could deal with—ingetting at and bringing out the individual character in each. Iallow for other people being twice as capable as myself and hencethe total of thirty-two.

Men talk of having fine Troops of 60 or even 100—and theirleaders tell me that their boys are equally well trained as insmaller Troops. I express admiration ("admiration" literal ly trans -lated means "surprise"), and I don't believe them.

"Why worry about individual training?" they ask. Because itis the only way by which you can educate. You can instruct anynumber of boys, a thousand at a time if you have a loud voiceand attract ive methods of disciplinary means. But that is nottraining—it is not education.

Education is the thing that counts in building character andin making men.

The incentive to perfect himself, when properly instilled intothe individual, brings about his active effort on the line most suit-able to his temperament and powers.

It is not the slightest use to preach the Scout Law or to giveit out as orders to a crowd of boys: each mind requires its specialexposition of them and the ambition to carry them out.

That is where the personality and ability of the Scoutmastercome in.

So, let us consider a few of the qualities, moral and mental,that go to make Character, and then see how the Scoutmastercan get the boy to develop these for himself through Scouting.

28 Character

Chivalry and Fair PlayThe code of the medieval knights has been the foundation

for the conduct of gentlemen ever since the day around A.D. 500,when King Arthur made the rules for his Knights of the RoundTable.

The romance of the Knights has its attraction for all boysand has its appeal to their moral sense. Their Code of Chivalryincluded Honour, Self-Discipline, Courtesy, Courage, Selfless Senseof Duty and Service, and the guidance of Religion.

The rules as they were re-published in the time of Henry VIIare as follow: —

1. They were never to put off their armour, except for thepurpose of rest at night.

2. They were to search for adventures wherein to attain"bruyt and renown."3. To defend the poor and weak.4. To give help to any who should ask it in a just quarrel.5. Not to offend one another.6. To fight for the defence and welfare of their country.7. To work for honour rather than profit.8. Never to break a promise for any reason whatever.9. To sacrifice themselves for the honour of their country.

10. "Sooner choose to die honestly than to flee shamefully."The ideals of the Knights and the idea of fair play is above

all the one which can be best instilled into boys and leads themto that strong view of justice which should be part of their char-acter, if they are going to make really good citizens.

This habit of seeing things from the other fellow's pointof view can be developed in outdoor games where fair play is

essential, whether it is in "Flag Raiding" or "Dispatch Running."During the game the strictest rules are observed which meanself-restraint and good temper on the part of the players, andat the end it is the proper form that the vietor should sympathisewith the one who is conquered, and that the opponent should bethe first to cheer and congratulate the winner.

This should be made the practice until it becomes the habit.A further valuable aid to the training in fairness is the hold-

ing of debates amongst the boys on subjects that interest themand which lend themselves to argument on both sides. This isto get them into the way of recognising that every importantquestion has two sides to it, and that they should not be carried

Character 29



away by the eloquence of one orator before they have heard whatthe defender of the other side has to say on the subject, and thatthey should then weigh the evidence of both sides for themselvesbefore making up their mind which part they should take.

A practical step in ensuring this is not to vote by show of hands, where the hesitating or inattentive boy votes according tothe majority. Each should record his vote "ay" or "no " on aslip of pape r and hand it in. This ensures his maki ng up his mindfor himself after duly weighing both sides of the question.

In the same way mock trials or arbitration of quarrels, if carried out seriously and on the lines of a law court, are of thegreatest value in teaching the boys the same idea of justice andfair play, and also give them a minor experience of what theircivic duties may be as jurym en or witnesses later on. The Courtof Honour in the Troop is another step in the same direction, andas the boys here have a real responsibility by being members of the Court, the seriousness of their views is brought home to themall the more, and encourages them to think out carefully the rightline to take when they have heard all the arguments on both sides.

Thus a Scoutmaster, who uses his ingenuity towards the endof teaching fair play, unselfishness and sense of duty to others,may make ample opportunities, whether indoors or out, for train-ing his Scouts. Of all the subjects with which we are dealing, Ibelieve this to be one of the most important towards self-govern-ing citizenship, though I fear I have only touched upon it in avery sketchy manner.

Discipline

A nation to be prosperous must be well disciplined, and youonly get discipline in the mass by discipline in the individual.

By discipline I mean obedience to authority and to other dictatesof duty.

This cannot be got by repressive measures, but by encourage-ment and by educating the boy first in self-discipline and in sac-rificing of self and selfish pleasure s for the benefit of othe rs. Thisteaching is largely effective by means of example, by puttingresponsibility upon him and by expecting a high standard of trustworthiness from him.

Responsibility is largely given through the Patrol System byholding the Leader responsible for what goes on amongst his boys.

Sir Henry Knyvett. in 1596, warned Queen Elizabeth that theState which neglects to train and discipline its youth producesnot merely rotten soldiers or sailors, but the far greater evil of

30 Character

equally rotten citizens for civil life; or, as he words it, "Forwant of true discipline the hour and wealth both of Prince andcountrie is desperatlie and frivouslie ruinated."

Discipline is not gained by punishing a child for a bad habit,but by substituting a better occupation, that will absorb hisattention, and gradually lead him to forget and abandon theold one.

The Scoutmaster should insist on discipline, and strict, quick obedience in small details. Let the boys run riot only when yougive leave for it—which is a good thing to do every now and then.

Sense of Honour

The Scout Law is the foundation on which the whole of Scouttraining rests.

Its various clauses must be fully explained and made clearto the boys by practical and simple illustrations of its applicationin their everyday life.

There is no teaching to compare with example. If the Scout-master himself conspicuously carries out the Scout Law in all hisdoings, the boys will be quick to follow his lead.

This example comes with all the more force if the Scoutmasterhimself takes the Scout Promise, in the same way as his Scouts.

The first Law, namely, A Scout's honour is to be trusted (AScout is Trustworthy), is one on which the whole of the Scout'sfuture behavi our and discipline hangs. The Scout is expected tobe straigh t. So it should be very carefully explained, as a firststep, by the Scoutmaster to his boys before taking the ScoutPromise.

The investiture of the Scout is purposely made into some-thing of a ceremony, since a little ritual of that kind if carried out

with strict solemnity, impresses the boy; and considering thegrave importance of the occasion, it is only right that he shouldbe impressed as much as possible. Then it is of great impor tancethat the Scout should periodically renew his knowledge of theLaw. Boys are apt to be forgetful, and it should neve r be allowedthat a boy who has made his solemn promise to carry out theScout Law should, at any time, not be able to say what the Law is.

Once the Scout understands what his honour is and has, byhis initiation, been put upon his honour, the Scoutmaster mustentir ely trust him to do things. You must show him by youraction that you consider him a responsible being. Give him chargeof something, whether temporary or permanent, and expect himto carry out his charge faithfully. Don't keep prying to see how

Character 31



he does it. Let him do it his own way, let him come a howlerover it if need be, but in any case leave him alone and trusthim to do his best. Trust should be the basis of all our moraltraining.

Giving responsibility is the key to success with boys, espe-cially with the rowdiest and most difficult boys.

The object of the Patrol System is mainly to give real respon-sibility to as many of the boys as possible with a view to develop-ing their character. If the Scoutmaster gives his Patrol Leaderreal power, expects a great deal from him, and leaves him a freehand in carrying out his work, he will have done more for thatboy's character expansion than any amount of school-trainingcould ever do.

Self-RelianceA boy does not really get the full value of Scout train-

ing until he is a First Class Scout. The tests for First Class Scoutswere laid down with the idea that a boy, who proved himself equipped to that extent, might reasonably be considered asgrounded in the qualities which go to make a good, manly citizen.

As the boy becomes conscious of no longer being a Tender-foot, but of being a responsible and trusted individual with powerto do things, he becomes self-reliant. Hope and ambition beginto dawn for him.

He could not but feel himself a more capable fellow thanbefore, and therefore, he should have that confidence in himself which will give him the hope and pluck in time of stress inthe struggle of life, which will encourage him to stick it out tillhe achieves success.

First aid or firemanship, or trek cart or bridge building areof value for handiness and use of wits, since the boy, while work-ing in co-operation with the others, is responsible for his ownseparate part of the job.

Swimming has its educational value—mental, moral, andphysical—in giving you a sense of mastery over an element, andof power of saving life, and in the development of wind and limb.

When training the South African Constabulary I used to sendthe men out in pairs to carry out long distance rides of two orthree hundred miles to teach them to fend for themselves and touse their intelligence.

But when I had a somewhat dense pupil he was sent out alone,without another to lean upon, to find his own way, make his ownarrangements for feeding himself and his horse, and for drawing

32 Character

up the report of his expedition unaided. This was the best train-ing of all in self-reliance and intelligence, and this principle isone which I can confidently recommend to Scoutmasters intraining their Scouts.

Of all the schools the camp is far and away the best forteaching boys the desired character -attr ibutes. The environmentis healthy, the boys are elated and keen, all the interests of life

Help the boy to become self-reliant, resourceful, to "paddle his owncanoe" — that is, to look ahead and shape his own course in life.

are round them, and the Scoutmaster has them permanently forthe time, day and night, under his hand. In camp the Scoutmasterhas his greatest opportunity for watching and getting to knowthe individual characterist ics of each >f his boys, and then applythe necessary direction to their development; while the boys them-selves pick up the character-forming qualities incident to lifein camp, where discipline, resourcefulness, ingenuity, self-reliance,handcraft, woodcraft, boat-craft, team sense, nature lore, etc.,can all be imbibed under cheery and sympathetic direction of theunderstanding Scoutmaster. A week of this life is worth sixmonths of theoretical teaching in the meeting room, valuablethough that may be.

Therefore, it is most advisable that Scoutmasters who havenot had much experience in that line should study the subject of the camp in its various bearings.

Enjoyment of Life

Why is Nature Lore considered a Key Activity in Scouting?That is a question on which hangs the difference between

Scout work and that of the ordinary boys' club.It is easily answered in the phrase: "We want to teach our

Character 33



boys not merely how to get a living, but how to live"—that is,in the higher sense, how to enjoy life.

Nature lore, as I have probably insisted only too often, givesthe best means of opening out the minds and thoughts of boys,and at the same time, if the point is not lost sight of by theirScoutmaster, it gives them the power of appreciating beauty innature, and consequently in art, such as leads them to a higherenjoyment of life.

This is in addition to the realisation of God the Creatorthrough His wondrous work, which when coupled with active per-formance of His will in service for others constitutes the concretefoundation of religion.

Some years ago I was in the sitting-room of a friend who- had just died, and lying on the table beside his abandoned pipe and

tobacco pouch was a book by Richard Jefferies— Field and Hedge-row, in which a page was turned down which said: "The con-ception of mor al good is not altoget her satisfying . The highestform known to us at present is pure unselfishness, the doing of good not for any reward now or hereafter, nor for the comple-tion of any imagina ry scheme. That is the best we know, buthow unsatisfactory! An outlet is needed more fully satisfying tothe heart's inmost desire than is afforded by any labour of self-abnegation. It must be something in accord with the perceptionof beauty and of an ideal. Personal virtue is not enough. ThoughI cannot name the ideal good it seems to me that it will in someway be closely associated with the ideal beauty of Nature."

In other words, one may suggest that happiness is a matter of inner conscience and outward sense working in combination. Itis to be got where the conscience as well as the senses togetherare satisfied. If the above quoted definition be true , the converseis at least equally certain—namely, that the appreciation of beautycannot bring happiness if your conscience is not at rest. So thatif we want our boys to gain happiness in life we must put intothem the practice of doing good to their neighbours, and in addi-tion, the appreciation of the beautiful in Nature.

The shortest step to this last is through Nature lore: —

" . . . books in the running brooks,Sermons in stones, and good in everything."

Among the mass of boys their eyes have never been opened,and to the Scoutmaster is given the joy of bringing about thisworth-while operation.

Once the germ of woodcraft has entered into the mind of a

34 Character

boy, observation, memory and deduction develop automaticallyand become par t of his character. They remain whatev er otherpursuits he may afterwards take up.

As the wonders of nature are unfolded to the young mind,so too its beauties can be pointed out and gradually becomerecognised. When appreciation of beauty is once given a placein the mind, it grows automatically in the same way as observa-tion, and brings joy in the greyest of surroundings.

If I may diverge again, it was a dark, raw, foggy day in thebig gloomful station at Birmingham. We were hustled along ina throng of grimy workers and muddy travel-stained soldiers.Yet, as we pushed through the crowd, I started and looked around,went on, looked round again, and finally had a good eyefillingstare before I went on. I don't suppose my companions hadrealised it, but I had caught a gleam of sunshine in that murkyhole such as gave a new pleasure to the day. It was just a nursein brown uniform with gorgeous red-gold hair and a big bunchof yellow and brown chrysanthemums in her arms. Nothing verywonde rful you say. No, but for those who have eyes to see, thes egleams are there even in the worst of gloom.

If a boy only makes himself wear a cheery countenance inthe street, it is something. Itbrightens up numbers of hispassers-by. To get the boy to

do this as a step to greater hap-pifying is a thing worth trying _for.

It is too common an idea that boys are unable to appreciatebeauty and poetry; but I remember once some boys were beingshown a picture of a stormy landscape, of which Ruskin hadwritten that there was only one sign of peace in the whole wind-torn scene. One of the lads readi ly pointed to a spot of bluepeaceful sky that was apparent through a rift in the drivingwrack of clouds.

Poetry also appeals in a way that it is difficult to account for,

Character 35



and when the beautiful begins to catch hold, the young mindseems to yearn to express itself in something other than every-day prose.

Some of the best poetry can of course be found in prosewriting, but it is more generally associated with rhythm andrhyme . Rhyme, however, is apt to become the great effort withthe aspiring young poet, and so you get the most awful doggerelthrust upon you in your efforts to encourage poetry.

Switch the m off doggerel if you can. It is far too pre val ent .

Development of Outlook: Reverence

Development of outlook naturally begins with a respect forGod, which we may best term "Reverence."

Reverence to God and reverence for one's neighbour and

reverence for oneself as a servant of God, is the basis of everyform of religion. The method of expression of reverence to Godvaries with every sect and denomination. What sect or denomina-tion a boy belongs to depends, as a rule, on his parent s' wishes. Itis they who decide. It is our business to respect their wishes andto second their efforts to inculcate reverence, whatever form of religion the boy professes.

There may be many difficulties relating to the definition of thereligious training in our Movement where so many diferent de-nominations exist, and the details of the expression of duty toGod have, therefore, to be left largely in the hands of the localaut hor ity. But the re is no difficulty at all in sugges ting the lineto take on the human side, since direct duty to one's neighbouris implied in almost every form of belief.

The following is the attitude of the Scout Movement as regardsreligion, approved by the heads of all the different denominationson ou r Counc il: —

"(a) It is expected that every Scout shall belong to somereligious denomination, and attend its services.

"(b) Where a Troop is composed of members of one partic-ular form of religion, it is hoped that the Scoutmaster will arrangesuch denominational religious observances and instruction as he,in consultation with its Chaplain or other religious authority,may consider best.

"(c) Where a Troop consists of Scouts of various religionsthey should be encouraged to attend the service of their owndenomination, and in camp, any form of daily prayer and of weeklyDivine service should be of the simplest character, attendancebeing voluntary."

36 Character

If the Scoutmaster takes this pronouncement as his guide hecannot go far wrong.

I am perfectly convinced that there are more ways than oneby which reverenc e may be inculcated. The solution dependson the individual character and circumstances of the boy, whetherhe is a "hooligan" or a "mother' s darling." The training thatmay suit the one may not have muc h effect on the other. It isfor the teacher, whether Scoutmaster or Chaplain, to select theright training.

Religion can only be "caught," not "taught." It is not a dress-ing donned from outside, put on for Sunday wear. It is a true partof a boy's character, a development of soul, and not a veneer thatmay peel off. It is a ma tte r of perso nality , of inner conviction, notof instruction.

Speaking from a fairly wide personal experience, having hadsome thousands of young men through my hands, I have reachedthe conclusion that the actions of a very large proportion of ourmen are, at present, very little guided by religious conviction.

This may be attributed to a great extent to the fact thatoften instruction instead of education has been employed in thereligious training of the boy.

The consequence has been that the best boys in the Bible-class or Sunday School have grasped the idea, but in many casesthey have, by perfection in the letter, missed the spirit of theteaching and have become zealots with a restricted outlook, whilethe majority have never really been enthused, and have, as soonas they have left the class or school, lapsed into indifference andirreligion, and there has been no hand to retain them at thecritical time of their lives, i.e., sixteen to twenty-four.

It is not given to every man to be a good teacher of religion,and often the most earnest are the greatest failures—and withoutknowing it.

We have, fortunately, a number of exceptionally well-quali-fied men in this respect among our Scoutmasters, but there mustalso be a number who are doubtful as to their powers, and wherea man feels this, he does well to get a Chaplain, or other experi-enced teacher, for his Troop.

On the practical side, however, the Scoutmaster can in everycase do an immense amount towards helping the religious teacher,

just as he can help the schoolmaster by inculcating in his boys,in camp and club, the practical application of what they havebeen learning in theory in the school.

In denominational Troops there is, as a rule, a Troop Chaplain,Character 37



and the Scoutmaster should consult with him on all questions of religious instruction. For the purpose of its religious training,a service or class can be held, called a "Scouts' Own ." This isa gathering of Scouts for the worship of God and to promotefuller realisation of the Scout Law and Promise, but supplementaryto, and not in substitution for, regular religious observances.

Many of our Troops, however, are interdenominational, hav-ing boys of different forms of belief in their ran ks. Here th eboys should be sent to their own clergy and pastors for denomina-tional religious instruction.

Other Troops in slums and less-chance areas have ladsof practically no religion of any kind, and their parents are littleor no help to them. Naturally, these require different handling

and methods of training from those boys in whom religion hasbeen well grounded.Here, again, Scouting comes very practically to the aid of the

teacher, and has already given extraordinarily good results.The way in which Scouting can help is through the following: —

(a) Personal example of the Scoutmaster.(b) Nature study.(c) Good Turns.(d) Retention of the older boy.

(a) Personal Example —There is no doubt whatever that inthe boys' eyes it is what a man does that counts and not so muchwhat he says.

A Scoutmaster has, therefore, the greatest responsibility onhis shoulders for doing the right thing from the right motives,and for letting it be seen that he does so, but without making aparade of it. Here the attitude of elder brother rather than of teacher tells with the greater force.

(b) Nature Study —There are sermons in the observation of Nature, say, in bird life, the formation of every feather identicalwith that of the same species 10,000 miles away, the migration,the nesting, the colouring of the egg, the growth of the young,the mothering, the feeding, the flying power—all done without theaid of man, but under the law of the Creator; these are the bestof sermons for boys.

The flowers in their orders, and plants of every kind, theirbuds and bark, the animals and their habits and species; thenthe stars in the heavens, with their appointed places and orderedmoves in space, give to every one the first conception of Infinity

38 Character

and of the vast scheme of his Creator where man is of so smallaccount. All these have a fascination for boys, which appeals inan absorbing degree to their inquisitiveness and powers of observa-tion, and leads them directly to recognise the hand of God inthis world of wonders, if only some one introduces them to it.

The wonder to me of all wonders is how some teachers haveneglected this easy and unfailing means of education and havestruggled to impose Biblical instruction as the first step towardsgetting a restless, full-spirited boy to think of higher things.

(c) Good Turns —With a little encouragement on the part of the Scoutmaster the practice of daily Good Turns soon becomesa sort of fashion with boys, and it is the very best step towardsmaki ng a Christi an in fact, and not merely in theor y. The boy

has a natural instinct for good if he only sees a practical way toexercise it, and this Good Turn business meets it and developsit, and in developing it brings out the spirit of Christian charitytowards his neighbour.

This expression of his will to good, is more effective, morenatural to the boy, and more in accordance with the Scout methodthan his passive acceptance of instructive precepts.

(d) Retention of the Older Boy —So soon as the ordinary boybegins to get a scholastic knowledge of reading, writing, andarithmetic, he is sent out into the world, as fit and equipped formaking his caree r as a good working citizen. After leaving school,excellent technical schools are generally open to the boy, as wellas continuation classes, if he likes to go to them, or if his parentsinsist on his atten ding after his day's work is over. The best boysgo, and get a good final polish.

But what about the average and the bad? They are allowed

to slide away—just at the one period of their life when they mostof all need continuation and completion of what they have beenlearning, just at the time of their physical, mental and moralchange into what they are going to be for the rest of their lives.

This is where the Scout Movement can do so much for thelad, and it is for this important work that we are doing all wecan to organise the Senior Scouts in order to retain the boy, tokeep in touch with him, and to inspire him with the best ideals atthis, his crossroads for good or evil.

Self-Respect

In speaking of the forms of reverence which the boy shouldbe encouraged to develop, we must not omit the important one

Character 39



of reverence for himself, that is self-respect in its highest form.This, again, can well be inculcated through nature study as

a preliminary step. The anatomy of plants, or birds, or shell-fishmay be studied and shown to be the wonderful work of theCreator. Then the boy's own anatomy can be studied in a similarlight; the skeleton and the flesh, muscle, nerves, and sinews builtupon it, the blood flow and the breathing, the brain and controlof action, all repeated, down to the smallest details, in millionsof human beings, yet no two are exactly alike in face or fingerprints. Raise the boy's idea of the wonderful body which is givento him to keep and develop as God's own handiwork and temple;one which is physically capable of good work and brave deeds if guided by sense of duty and chivalry, that is by a high moral tone.

Thus is engendered self-respect.

This, of course, must not be preached to a lad in so manywords and then left to fructify, but should be inferred and ex-pected in all one's dealings with him. Especially it can be pro-moted by giving the boy responsibility, and by trusting him asan honourable being to carry out his duty to the best of hisability, and by treating him with respect and consideration, with-out spoiling him.

Loyalty

In addition to reverence to God and to one's neighbour, loy-alty to the country is essential.

Loyalty to country is of the highest value for keeping men'sviews balanced and in the proper perspective. The external signs,such as saluting the flag, standing for the National Anthem, andso on, help in promoting this, but the essential thing is the de-velopment of the true spirit which underlies such demonstrations.

Loyalty to himself on the part of the boy—that is, to hisbetter conscience—is the great step to self-realisation. Loyaltyto others is proved by self-expression and action rather than byprofession. Service for others and self-sacrifice must necessarilyinclude readiness to serve one's country should the necessity arisefor protecting it against foreign aggression; that is the duty of every citizen. But this does not mean that he is to develop abloodthirsty or aggressive spirit, nor that the boy need be trainedto military duties and ideas of fighting. This can be left until heis of age to judge for himself.

40 Character

Interest the boy in steadily exercising his body and limbs.

IL HEALTH AND STRENGTH

»"PHE VALUE of good health and strength in the making of a1 career and in the enjoyment of life is incalculable. That is

pretty obvious. As a matter of education one may take it to beof greater value than "book-learning" and almost as valuable as"Character."

We in the Scout Movement can do much by giving to the boyssome of the training in health and personal hygiene which is soessential to their efficiency as citizens.

Our task should be to get the boys to be athletic-minded, atthe same time showing them that they must first build up theirbodily health before they can safely take up strenuous physicalexercises. This would be by proper plain feeding, and hygieniccare of themselves in the matter of cleanliness, nose breathing,rest, clothing, regular habits, continence, and so on. We mustavoid making them introspective by thinking of themselves liableto illness, etc., but hold up fitness for sport as the aim of healthtraining.

With only half an hour per week in the ordinary Scout Troopmeeting it is not possible for us to give formal physical training,but what we can do is to teach the boy to be PERSONALLYRESPONSIBLE TO HIMSELF FOR HIS HEALTH—how to secure

Health and Strength 41



it and keep it; also we can teach him a few exercises that will helphim to develop his strength if he will practise them in his owntime; and we can interest him in outdoor activities and games asbeing not only amusement for him but of practical value inmaking him sound, strong and healthy for life.

Health of body involves health of nerves and health of mind.Here our character training meets the physical.

BE FIT!

Studies have shown that there is an immense percentage of unfit men among our citizens who, with reasonable care andunde rsta ndin g, could hav e been health y efficient beings. Some of the reports on the health of school children show that one inevery five suffers from defects that will prevent him from beingefficient in after-life—defects, mind you, which might have beenprevented.

These returns are immensely suggestive, and point at once tothe need and the remedy; if we took the boy in time, tens of thousands could be saved every year to become strong and cap-able citizens instead of dragging out a miserable semi-efficientexistence.

It is a matter of national as well as individual importance.There is much talk of developing the physical training of

the rising generation on a much more general basis, and in thisdirection lies a tremendous opening for our work.

But I want to warn Scoutmasters against being led by thiscry on to the wrong tack.

You know from our chart on page 17 how and whyCharacter and Physical Health are two of our main objects inScouting, and also the steps by which we endeavour to gain them.

But bear in mind physical health is not necessarily the resultof physical drill.The physical training given in the Army has been carefully

thoug ht out, and is exce llent for its purpose. It is suited to themore formed muscular system of the man, and soldiers improvetremendously under this intensive form of training.

But it is often artificial, designed to make up for what hasnot been naturally acquired.

God didn't invent physical "jerks ." The Zulu warrior, splen -did specimen though he is, never went through Swedish drill.Even the ordinary boy, who has played football and has kepthimself fit by training exercises between whiles, seldom needsphysical drill to develop him afterwards.

42 Health an d Strength

It is good open-air games, hiking and camping, and healthyfeeding coupled with adequate rest which bring to the boy healthand strength in a natural and not an artificial way.

Nobody will disagree with this. It is quite simple in theory,but in its practice we find some few difficulties to overcome.

Your city boy or the factory hand who is at work all daycannot get out to play games in the open. The outdoor work erand country boy should by right have a better chance since helives more in the open air, but it is seldom that even a countryboy knows how to play a game, or even how to run!

It is perfectly astonishing to see how few boys are able to run.The natural, easy light step comes only with the practice of

runni ng. Without it the poor boy develops either the slow heavyplod of the clod-hopper or the shuffling paddle of the city man(and what a lot of character is conveyed in the gait of a man!).

Organised Games

One of the objects of Scouting is to supply team games andactivities which can promote the boy's health and strength andhelp to develop his characte r. These games have to be madeattractive and competitive, and it is through them that we caninculcate the elements of pluck, obedience to rules, discipline, self-control, keenness, fortitude, leadership and unselfish team play.

Examples of such games and practices are climbing of allsorts, ladders, ropes, trees, rocks, etc.; stepping-stones and plank-walking competitions; hurdle racing over staves supported onforked sticks; "Spottyface" for strengthening the eyesight; ballthrowing and catching; boxing; wrestling, swimming, hiking, skip-ping, hopping fights, relay racing, cock-fighting, folk-dancing,action songs and chanties, etc. These and many other activiti es

open a wide and varied program of competition for Patrol againstPatrol, which an imaginative Scoutmaster can apply in turn todevelop the physical points required.

Such vigorous Scout games are to my mind the best form of physical education, because most of them bring in moral educa-tion as well, and most of them are inexpensive and do not requirewell-kept grounds, apparatus, etc.

It is important to arrange all games and competitions, as faras possible, so that all the Scouts take part, because we do notwant to have merely one or two brilliant performers and theothers no use at all. All ought to get practic e, and all ought tobe pre tty good. Games should be organised mainly as teammatches, where the Patrol forms the team. In competitions where




there are enough entries to make heats, ties should be run off bylosers instead of the usual system of by winners, and the gameshould be to find out which are the worst instead of which arethe best. Good men will strive just as hard not to be worst asthey would to gain a prize, and this form of competition givesthe backward man most practice.

We in the Scouts can show every boy—town or country—how to be a player of games, and so to enjoy life and at the sametime to strengthen his physical as well as his moral fibre.

Physical ExercisesPhysical exercises are an intensive form of development

where you cannot get good or frequent opportunity of games, andmay well be used in addition to games, provided that:

1. They are not made entirely a drill, but something that eachboy can really understand and want to practise for himself be-cause of the good that he knows it does him.

2. The instructor has some knowledge of anatomy and thepossible harm of many physical drill movements on the young

Make each boy feel that he isa responsible being, and re-sponsible therefore for the careof his body and health; that itis part of his duty to God todevelop his body to the bestextent.

unformed body. The six body exercises given in Scouting for Boys can be taught without any danger to the lad by Scoutmasterswho are not experts in anatomy, etc. (These exercises should bedone by the Scout himself—once he has learned the proper actionsand breathing—at his own time, at home, and should not becomea routine part of a Troop meeting.)

We should do everything to get the boy to interest himself in steadily exercising his body and limbs, and in practising dif-ficult feats with pluck and patience until he masters them!

44 Health and Strength

It is a good plan, for instance, for each Troop to adopt certainstandards for simple exercises like "standing high jump," "hop,step and jump," "putting the bag," and so on, so that each indi-vidual Scout can try to increase his own ability and reach ahigher standard.

Then a team uniform of sorts is an attraction to the boys,promotes esprit de corps in his athletic work, and incidentallyinvolves changing his clothes before and after playing, encouragesa rub down—a wash—cleanliness.

"How to keep fit," soon becomes a subject in which the athleticboy takes a close personal interest, and can be formed the basisof valuable instruction in self-care, food values, hygiene, con-tinence, temperance, etc., etc. All this means physical education.

DrillOne hears a great many people advocating drill as the way to

bring about better physical development among boys. I have hada good deal to do with drilling in my time, and if people think they are going to develop a boy's physical strength and set-up bydrilling him for an hour a week, they will meet with disappoint-ing results.

Drill as given to soldiers, day by day, for month after month,undoubtedly does bring about great physical development. But theinstructors—these are well-trained experts—have their pupilscontinually under their charge and under strict discipline, andeven they occasionally make mistakes, and heart-strain and othertroubles are not infrequently produced even in the grown andformed man.

Furthermore, drill is all a matter of instruction, of hammer-ing it into the boys, and is in no way an education where they

learn it for themselves.As regards drill for Scouts, I have frequently had to remindScoutmasters that it is to be avoided—that is, in excess. Apartfrom militarist objections on the part of some parents, one isaverse to it because a second-rate Scoutmaster cannot see thehigher aim of Scouting (namely, drawing out of the individual),and not having the originality to teach it even if he saw it, hereverts to drill as an easy means of getting his boys into somesort of shape for making a show on parade.

At the same time, Scoutmasters occasionally go too far theother way, and allow their boys to go slack all over the place,without any apparent discipline or smartness. This is worse. Youwant a golden mean—just sufficient instruction to show them




what is wanted of them in smartness and deportment, and a fundof team spirit, such as makes them brace themselves up and bearthemselves like men for the honour of their Troop. Occasionaldrills are necessary to keep this up, but these should not be in-dulged in at the expense of the more valuable Scout training.

All the drill we require in Scouting to set our boys up, andget them to move like men and not sheep, is a few minutes silentdrill at the beginning of a meeting or an occasional game of "O'Grady says." Although we do not want to neglect drill alto-gether, far preferable is the drill in firemanship, trek cart, life-boat launching, bridge building, and other sets of exercises. Thesedemand equal smartness, activity, and discipline, but the pointis that each boy is using his head in doing his own particularshare of the work for the success of the whole team. Moreover,

competitions in these are of highest interest to the boys as wellas to the onlookers. An ulterior point is that they can breed moraleand fair play.

It should be "the thing'' for the boys never to bear envy orto mention unfairness of judging or of the opponent's tactics whentheir team is defeated, and whatever disappointment they mayfeel they should only show cordial praise for the other side. Thismeans true self-discipline and unselfishness, and it promotes that

—good feeling all round which is so much needed for breaking downprejudices.

I know a very smart regiment in which the recruits receivedvery little drill; when once they had been shown how to holdthemselves they were told that as soon as they could do it habitu-ally they would be allowed to go out and take their pleasures andtheir duties as ordinary soldiers. It was "up to them" to smartenthemselves up instead of having deportment drilled into themfor months. They drilled themselves and each other, and passed outof the recruit stage in less than half the ordinary time.

Education as opposed to instruction once more! The resultwas obtained by putting the ambition and responsibility on tothe men themselves. And that is exactly the way by which, Ibelieve, you can best produce physical development among boys.

But, after all, natural games, plenty of fresh air, wholesomefood, and adequate rest do far more to produce well-developedhealthy boys than any amount of physical or military drill.

The Out-of-Doors

Oxygen for Ox's Strength. —I once saw some very smart phys-ical drill by a Scout Troop in their headquarters.


It was very fresh and good, but, my wig, the air was not!It was, to say the least, "niffy." There was no ventilation. Theboys were working like engines, but actually undoing their workby sucking in poison instead of strengthening their blood.

Fresh air is half the battle towards producing results in phys-ical exercises and it may advantageously be taken through theskin as well as through the nose when possible.

Yes—that open air is the secret of success. It is what Scoutingis for—to develop the out-of-doors habit as much as possible.

I asked a Scoutmaster once, in a great city, how he managedhis Saturday hikes, whether in the park or in the country?

He did not have them at all. Why not? Because his boysdid not care about them. They preferred to come into the meetingroom on Saturday afternoons!

Of course they preferred it, poor little beggars; they wereaccustomed to being indoors. But that is what we are out to pre-vent in the Scouts—our object is to wean them from indoors andto make the outdoors attractive to them.

Alexandre Dumas fils wrote: "If I were King of France Iwouldn't allow any child of under twelve years to come into atown. Till then the youngsters would have to live in the open—out in the sun, in the fields, in the woods, in company with dogsand horses, face to face with nature, which strengthens the bodies,lends intelligence to the understanding, gives poetry to the soul,and rouses in them a curiosity which is more valuable to educationthan all the grammar books in the world.

"They would understand the noises as well as the silences of the night; they would have the best of religions—that which Godhimself reveals in the glorious sight of His daily wonders.

"And at twelve years of age, strong, high-minded and full of

understanding, they would be capable of receiving the methodicalinstruction which it would then be right to give them, and whoseinculcation would then be easily accomplished in'four.or five years.

"Unfortunately for the youngsters, though happily for France,I don't happen to be King.

"All that I can do is to give the advice and to suggest theway. The way is—make physical education of the child a firststep in his life."

In the Scouts especially, if we adhere to our proper metier,we ought to make a big step in this direction.

The open-air is the real objective of Scouting, and the keyto its success. But with too much town life we are apt to underlookour object and revert to type.




We are not a club—nor a Sunday school—but a school of thewoods. We must get more into the open for the health, whetherof the body or the soul, of Scout and of Scoutmaster.

The camp is what the boy looks forward to in Scouting, andis the Scoutmaster's great opportunity.

The camp cannot fail to grip every boy with its outdoor lifeand taste of the wild, with its improvised cooking expedients, thegames over woodland or moor, the tracking, the path-finding, thepioneering, the minor hardships and the jolly camp fire sing songs.

We want open-air space, grounds of our own, preferably per-manent camp grounds easily accessible for the use of Scouts. Asthe Movement grows these should form regular institutions at allcentres of Scouting.

Besides serving this great purpose such camps would havea double value. They could form centres of instruction for officers,where they could receive training in camp craft and Nature lore,and above all could imbibe the spirit of the out-of-doors—theBrotherhood of the Backwoods.

In the past years many such grounds have been acquired,for use as Training Grounds for Scouters, and Camping Groundsfor Scouts. These permanent grounds have well proved their valuefor camp life, but we want more and that soon before all the groundround our cities has been bought up for building purposes.

I used the expression "camp life." Keep in mind that "camplife" is different from "living under canvas."

I'was shown a pattern school boy camp not long ago wherethere were rows of tents smartly pitched and perfectly aligned,with a fine big mess marquee and well-appointed cooks' quarters.There were brick paths and wooden bathing houses and latrines.

It was all exceedingly well planned, and put up by the contractor.The officer who organised it all merely had to pay down a cer-tain sum and the whole thing was done. It was quite simple andbusinesslike.

My only complaint about it was that it wasn't camping. Livingunder canvas is a very different thing from camping. Any ass, soto speak, can live under canvas where he is one of a herd witheverything done for him; but he might just as well stop at homefor all the good it is likely to do him.

In Scouting we know that what appeals to the boys, and isat the same time an education for them, is real camping—that is,where they prepare their own encampment even to the extent of previously making their own tents and learning to cook theirown food.


Then the pitching of tents in separate sites and selected nooks,by Patrols, the arranging of water-supply and firewood, the prepa-ration of bathing places, field kitchens, latrines, grease and refusepits, etc., the use of camp expedients, and the making of camputensils and furniture, will give a keen interest and invaluabletraining.

Where you have a large number of boys in a canvas townyou are forced to have drill and special instruction as a means of supplying mass occupation; whereas with a few Patrols, apart

Camp is essential to the suc-cessful training of a Troop. Butthe camp must be a busy oneand not a school for aimlessloafing.

from their camp work, which fills up a lot of time, there is thecontinuous opportunity for education in nature lore and in thedevelopment of health of body and mind through cross-countryruns and hikes, and the outdoor life of the woods.

My ideal camp is one where everybody is cheery and busy,where the Patrols are kept intact under all circumstances, andwhere every Patrol Leader and Scout takes a genuine pride inhis camp and his gadgets.

In a small camp so very much can be done through the ex-ample of the Scoutmaster. You are living among your boys andare watched by each of them, and imitated unconsciously by them,and probably unobserved by yourself.

If you are lazy they will be lazy; if you make cleanliness ahobby it will become theirs; if you are clever at devising campaccessories, they will become rival inventors, and so on.

But don't do too much of what should be done by the boysthemselves, see that they do it—"when you want a thing donedon't do it yourself" is the right motto.

We want not only really healthy and clean camps, carried

Health an d Strength 49



out in accordance with the local instructions, but camps where theboys can employ the nearest approach to a backwoodsman life andadventure.

Swimming, Boating, Signalling

Swimming —The advantages of swimming among many otherforms of physical t raining are these: —

The boy delights in it, and is keen to learn.He gets to enjoy cleanliness.He learns pluck in attaining the art.He gains self-confidence on mastering it.He develops his chest and breathing organs.He develops muscle.

He gains the power of saving life and looks for opportunitiesof doing it.Boat-rowing also is an excellent muscle developer, and ap-

peals very greatly to the Scout. It is only allowed after he hasqualified in swimming, so induces a good lot of boys to train them-selves in that line.

Signalling —Signalling practice, while it is educating the boy'sintelligence, is at the same time giving him valuable physical ex-ercise hour after hour in body-twisting and arm-work, and intraining the eye, but it is a practice which should be taken out-of-doors, so that it does not degenerate into a mere indoor exer-cise devoid of utility, purpose or romance.

PERSONAL HYGIENE

Cleanliness

Cleanliness inside as well as out is of prime importance tohealth.

That rub down with a damp rough towel, where baths areimpossible, is of very big importance to inculcate as a habit inyour boys. Also, the habit of washing hands before a meal andafter the daily rear. The need for scrupulous cleanliness may wellbe inculcated by the practice of "Kill that fly," not merely as auseful public service which Scouts can perform, but also as a meansof introducing them to the minuteness of disease-germs as con-veyed on flies' feet, and yet of such effect as to poison people.

Food

Food is an all-important consideration for the growing lad,yet there is a vast amount of ignorance on the subject on the part


of parents, and, therefore, on the part of the boys. It is helpfultowards the energy and health of his boys—especially in camp—that the Scoutmaster should know something about the matter.

As regards quantity, a boy between thirteen and fifteen re-quires about 80 per cent of a man's allowance. He will gladly putdown 150 per cent if permitted.

Temperance

Temperate eating is almost as necessary with the boy as tem-perate drinking with the man. It is a good lesson in self-restraintfor him to curb his appetite, both as regards the quantity and thenature of his food—few have fathomed the extent of a boy's ca-pacity when it comes to tucking away food of whatever variety.The aim to be held out to him is fitness for athletics.

Temperance thus becomes a moral as well as physical detailof training.

Continence

Of all the points in the education of a boy the most difficultand one of the most important is that of sex hygiene. Body, mind,

Make your boys realise that itis manly to be clean. Keep thembusy with healthy activities—that's your best means for help-ing them to kick out smuttythoughts and unclean habits.

and soul, health, morality, and character, all are involved in thequestion. It is a matter which has to be approached with tact onthe part of the Scoutmaster, according to the individual characterof each case. It is not as yet dealt with adequately by the Educationauthorities. But it is one that cannot be ignored in the educationof a boy, still less in that of the girl.

There is a great barrier of prejudice and false prudery on thepart of parents and public still to be overcome, and this has to




be recognised and handled tactfully. It is, of course, primarily theduty of parents to see that their children receive proper instruc-tion, but a very large number of them shirk their duty and thenbuild up excuses for doing so. Such neglect is little short of criminal.

As Dr. Allen Warner writes : —"Fear has often been expressed in the past that such teaching

will lead to vicious habits, but there is no evidence that this is true,whilst experience proves that ignorance on this subject has led tothe moral and physical wreckage of many lives."

This is only too true, and I can testify from a fairly wide ex-perience among soldiers and others. The amount of secret im-morality that is now prevalent is very serious indeed.

The very fact that the subject is taboo between the boy andgrown-ups is provocative, and the usual result is that he getshis knowledge, in a most perverted form, from another boy.

In What a Boy Should Know, Drs. Schofield and Jacksonwrite:—"The sexual development of boys is gradual, and it is anunfortunate fact that habits of abuse are begun and constantlypractised at a much younger age. If safety lies in the adage that'to be forewarned is to be forearmed,' then boys must be told whatis coming to them, for the critical period of puberty lies ahead of them, and no boy should be allowed to reach it in ignorance."

A Scoutmaster has here a tremendous field for good. He mustin the first instance ascertain whether the father of the boy hasany objection to his talking to him on the subject. He will do wellalso to consult with those who know the boy—Pastor, Doctor,Schoolmaster, and to realise that he himself must be possessed of sufficient experience, knowledge and character in order to be in aposition to be of real help to the boy.

Then he will best enter into it in a matter-of-fact way amongother subjects on which he may be advising him, placing himself on the footing of an elder brother in doing so. To some Scoutmasterswho have never done it the question seems a very difficult one toapproach. It is in reality as easy as shelling peas. And the valueof it cannot be exaggerated.

Personally, apart from explaining as a preliminary how plants,and fishes, and animals reproduce their species, I have found itappeal to boys, as it did to me when I first heard it, to tell themhow in every boy is growing the germ of another child to comefrom him. That that germ has been handed down to him fromfather to son from generations back. He has it in trust from God;it is his duty to keep it until he is married and passes it to his wifefor reproduction. He cannot honourably forget his charge and


throw it away in the meantime. Temptation will come to him inmany forms to do so, but he has got to be strong and to guard it.

Every different boy at each age may need a different wayof treatment in the matter. The main thing is for the Scoutmasterto have the lad's full confidence as a first step, and to be to himin the relation of an elder brother—where both can speak quiteopenly.

At the same time it is necessary for me to add a word of warning to young and inexperienced Scouters. The fact that theyare nearer the boy in age is not necessarily an advantage. Fre-quently it is a handicap and sometimes a real danger. From whatI have written in the past on this subject, an impression has goneabroad that I consider it to be the duty of every Scoutmaster toenlighten each of his Scouts on this subject. That has never beenmy intention. It would upset the whole fabric of the family systemto do so. What I do desire to do is to direct the attention of Scout-masters to the question and to ask them to try and see that theirScouts receive enlightenment from the right person at the righttime. More frequently than not the right person is the Parent,Pastor, Doctor or another — NOT the Scoutmaster.

Non-Smoking

Somebody once wrote an improved edition of Scouting for Boys, and in it he ordered that "Scouts are on no account to smoke."It is generally a risky thing to order boys not to do a thing; itimmediately opens to them the adventure of doing it contrary toorders.

Advise them against a thing, or talk of it as despicable orsilly, and they will avoid it. I am sure this is very much the casein the matter of unclean talk, of gambling, of smoking, and other

youthful faults.It is well to establish a good tone and a public opinion amongyour boys on a plane which puts these things down as "what kidsdo, in order to look smart before others."

Walking the Tight Rope

This may strike some readers as a curious means of teachingself-discipline or health. But it has been found by experience todo so.

You may see it being practised in Army gymnasia in the formof men walking a plank fixed up sideways at a height of somefeet above the floor. It is found that by getting them to concen-trate their whole attention on this ticklish test, they gain a close




hold over themselves and their nerves. The experiment has beencarried further to the extent that it has been found that if a sol-dier is making bad practice on the rifle-range a few practices in"walking the plank" readily bring back for him the necessaryself-control and power of concentration.

It is an exercise that appeals to boys. They can bind severalScout staves together as a balancing pole, which will give themadditional power of balance in their first efforts.

As I have already indicated, character is concerned in suchexercises too, and that is one of the reasons I deplore the moderntendency to place "Safety first," before all else. A certain amountof risk is necessary to life, a certain amount of practice in takingrisks is necessary to the prolongation of life. Scouts have to be

prepared to encounter difficulties and dangers in life. We do not,therefore, want to make their training too soft.

Handicapped Scouts

Through Scouting there are numbers of crippled, deaf anddumb, and blind boys now gaining greater health, happiness andhope than they ever had before. Most of these boys are unableto pass all the ordinary Scout tests, and are supplied with special,or alternative tests.

Many of these boys are by no means easy to deal with, anddemand far more patience and individual attention than ordinaryboys. But the result is well worth it. The testimony of doctors,matrons, nurses and teachers— who in the majority of cases are not Scouts themselves —to the good done to the boys, and through theboys to the Institutions, by Scouting, is overwhelming.

The wonderful thing about such boys is their cheeriness and

their eagerness to do as much in Scouting as they possibly can.They do not want more special tests and treatment than is abso-lutely necessary. Scouting helps them by associating them in aworld-wide brotherhood, by giving them something to do and tolook forward to, by giving them an opportunity to prove to them-selves and to others that they can do things—and difficult thingstoo—for themselves.


The boy of initiative is the boy who will be picked for the job.

III. HANDCRAFT AND SKILL

THERE IS TODAY, as there has always been, a fearful wasteof human material. This is mainly due to ineffective training.

The general mass of boys are not taught to like work. Even whenthey are taught handicrafts or business qualities, they are seldomshown how to apply these to making a career, nor is the flame of ambition kindled in them. Square pegs are too often placed inround holes.

Exactly where the fault lies one cannot say, but the fact re-mains that it is so.Consequently, those boys who have not got these gifts natu-

rally are allowed to drift and to become wasters. They are amisery to themselves and a burden—even in some cases, a danger—to the State. And the large proportion of those who do makesome sort of a success would undoubtedly do better were theytrained in a more practical way.

In the Boy Scouts we can do something to remedy these evils.We can take some steps towards giving even the poorest boy astart and a chance in life—equipped, at any rate, with hope anda handicraft.

How? Naturally one's thoughts run to handcraft Badges.Though we call these "Handicrafts," they are, with our standard

Handcra ft an d Skill 55



of tests, little more than "Hobbies." This, however, is part of ourpolicy of leading the boys on with small and easy beginnings; andthese hobbies become more specialised as vocational training forthe Senior Scouts. In the meantime, hobbies have their value;through these the boy learns to use his fingers and his brain, andto take a pleasure in work. For one boy these may remain hishobbies for years; for another they may lead to craftsmanshipwhich will give him a career. In either case, the boy is not solikely to become a waster later on. Hobbies are an antidote toSatan's little games.

But hobbies or handicrafts are not likely to make a career fora boy without the help of certain moral qualities. Thus, the crafts-man must have self-discipline. He must adapt himself to the re-

quirements of his employer and of his fellow-workers, he mustkeep himself sober, and efficient, and willing.He must have energy, and that depends on the amount he has

of ambition, of skill, of resourcefulness, and of good health.Now, how do we apply these in the Boy Scout's training?

Pioneering as a First Step

The first step towards getting a Scout to take up handiwork is most easily effected in camp, in the practice of hut-building,tree-felling, bridge-building, improvising camp utensils, such aspot-hooks and plate-racks, etc., tent-making, mat-weaving withthe camp-loom, and so on. The boys find these tasks to be prac-tical and useful to their comfort in the camping season.

After making a start on these, they will be the more keento go in for such hobbies in the winter evenings, as will bringthem Badges in return for proficiency, and money in return forskilful work. In that way they soon grow into ardent, energeticworkers.

Proficiency Badges (Merit Badges)

Proficiency Badges are established with a view to developingin each lad the taste for hobbies or handicrafts, one of which mayultimately give him a career and not leave him hopeless andhelpless on going out into the world.

The Badges are merely intended as an encouragement to a boyto take up a hobby or occupation and to make some sort of progressin it; they are a sign to an outsider that he has done so; they arenot intended to signify that he is a master in the craft he is testedin. If once we make Scouting into a formal scheme of serious in-struction in efficiency, we miss the whole point and value of Scout

56 Handc raft an d Skill

training, and we trench on the work of the schools without thetrained experts for carrying it out.

We want to get ALL our boys along through cheery self-development from within and not through the imposition of formalinstruction from without.

But the object of the Badge System in Scouting is also to givethe Scoutmaster an instrument by which he can stimulate keen-ness on the part of every and any boy to take up hobbiesthat can be helpful in forming his character or developing hisskill.

It is an instrument which—if applied with understanding andsympathy—is designed to give hope and ambition even to the dull-

est and most backward, who would otherwise be quickly out-distanced and so rendered hopeless in the race of life. It is forthis reason that the standard of proficiency is purposely left un-defined. Our standard for Badge earning is not the attainment of a certain level of quality of knowledge or skill, but the AMOUNTOF EFFORT THE BOY HAS PUT INTO ACQUIRING SUCHKNOWLEDGE OR SKILL This brings the most hopeless case on toa footing of equal possibility with his more brilliant or better-off brother.

An understanding Scoutmaster who has made a study of hisboys' psychology can thus give to the boy an encouraging handi-cap, such as will give the dull boy a fair start alongside his better-brained brother. And the backward boy, in whom the inferioritycomplex has been born through many failures, can have his firstwin or two made easy for him so that he is led to intensify hisefforts. If he is a trier, no matter how clumsy, his examiner canaccord him his Badge, and this generally inspires the boy to goon trying till he wins further Badges and becomes normallycapable.

The examination for Badges is not competitive, but just atest for the individual. The Scoutmaster and the examiner musttherefore work in close harmony, judging each individual case onits merits, and discriminating where to be generous and where totighten up.

Some are inclined to insist that their Scouts should be first-rate before they can get a Badge. That is very right, in theory;you get a few boys pretty proficient in this way; but our object isto get all the boys interested. The Scoutmaster who puts his boysat an easy fence to begin with will find them jumping with confi-dence and keenness, whereas if he gives them an upstanding stonewall to begin, it makes them shy of leaping at all.

Handcraft and Skill 57



At the same time, we do not recommend the other extreme,namely, that of almost giving away the Badges on very slightknowledge of the subjects. It is a matter where examiners shoulduse their sense and discretion, keeping the main aim in view.

There is always the danger of Badge-hunting supplantingBadge-earning. Our aim is to make boys into smiling, sensible,self-effacing, hardworking citizens, instead of showy, self-indul-gent boys. The Scoutmaster must be on the alert to check Badge-hunting and to realise which is the Badge-hunter and which isthe keen and earnest worker.

Thus the success of the Badge System depends very largelyon the Scoutmaster himself and his individual handling of it.

IntelligenceObservation and deduction are the basis of all knowledge.

The importance of the power of observation and deduction to theyoung citizen can therefore not be overestimated. Childrenare proverbially quick in observation, but it dies out as they growolder, largely because first experiences catch their attention, whichthey fail to do on repetition.

Observation is, in fact, a habit to which a boy has to betrained. Tracking is an interesting step towards gaining it. De-duction is the art of subsequently reasoning out and extractingthe meaning from the points observed.

When once observation and deduction have been made habit-ual in the boy, a great step in the development of character hasbeen gained.

The value of tracking and tracking games can thus readilybe seen. Tracking out-of-doors and lectures on tracks and

tracking in the meeting room should be encouraged in all ScoutTroops.The general intelligence and quick-wittedness of the boys can

very considerably be educated by their finding the way with amap, noticing landmarks, estimating heights and distances, notic-ing and reporting details of people, vehicles, cattle, by the repro-duction of Sherlock Holmes stories in scenes, and through numer-ous other Scout practices. Signalling sharpens their wits, developstheir eyesight, and encourages them to study and to concentratetheir minds. First aid instruction has also similar educative value.

Winter evenings and wet days can be usefully employed bythe Scoutmaster reading the principal items of news in the day'snewspaper, illustrating them by map, etc. The getting- up of plays and pageants bearing on the history of the place is also

58 Handcraft and Skill

an excellent means of getting the boys to study, and to expressthemselves without self-consciousness.

Self-Expression

Our Art Badge is devised to lead boys on to express theirideas graphically from their own observation or imagination with-out attempting thereby to be or to imitate artists. By encourag-ing drawing, however crude, on the part of the youngster, hecan be led on to recognise beauty in color or in form, to realise

Singing and acting are excel-lent for training in self-expres-sion. Also they mean good teamwork, everybody learning hispart and doing it well, not forapplause for himself but for thesuccess of the whole show.

that even in sordid surroundings there may yet be light andshadow, color and beauty.

A further stage in his education can be brought about bygetting him to practice mental photography, that is to notice thedetails of a scene or incident or person, and fix these in his mind,and then to go and reproduce them on paper.

This teaches observation in the highest degree. Persona llyI have found by practice that one can develop a certain and con-siderable power in this direction.

Rhythm is a form of art which comes naturally even to theuntrained mind, whether it be employed in poetry or music or inbody exercises. It gives a balance and order which has its natur alappeal even and especially among those closest to nature—savages.In the form of music it is of course most obvious and universal.The Zulu War Song when sung by four or five thousand warriorsis an example of rhythm, in music, poetry and bodily movementcombined.

The enjoyment of rendering music is common to all thehuman family. The song as a setting to words enables the soul




to give itself expression which, when adequately done, bringspleasure both to the singer and to his hearer.

Through his natural love of music the boy can be linkedup with poetry and higher sentiment as by a natural and easytransition. It opens a ready means to the Scoutmaster of teach-ing happiness to his lads and at the same time of raising the toneof their thoughts.

Play-acting also ought to form part of every boy's educationfor self-expression.

At school I was encouraged to do a lot of play-acting and Ihav e thanke d my star s ever since that I did so. For one thingit taught me to learn yards of stuff by heart; also accustomed meto speak clearly and without nervousness before a lot of people;

and it gave me the novel joy of being someone else for a time.It led one to know the beauties of Shakespeare and other

authors, to feel, while expressing them, the emotions of joy andsorrow, love and sympathy.

Above all it gave one the pleasure and happiness of givingpleasure to other people at times when they needed it.

Many Troops are giving entertainments in the winter monthsand are thus not only earning satisfactory additions to their funds,but are giving good training to their boys and pleasure to others.

From Hobby to Career

Hobbies, handcraft, intelligence and health are preliminarysteps for developing love of work and ability to carry on, whichare essential to successful work. The second stage is fitting theyoung worker to the right kind of work.

The best workers, like the happiest livers, look upon their

work as a kind of game: the harder they play the more enjoy-able it becomes. H. G. Wells has said: "I have noticed that so-called great men are really boys at heart, that is. they are boysin the eagerness of their enjoyment of their task. They work be-cause they like to work, and thus their work is really play tothem. The boy is not only father to the man, but he is the manand does not disappear at all."

Ralph Parlette says truly: "PLAY is Loving to do things, andWORK is Having to do things."

In Scouting we try to help the boys acquire this attitude, bymaking them personally enthused in subjects that appeal to themindividually, and that will be helpful to them later on.

We do this first and foremost through the fun and jollity of Scouting. The boys can then by progressive stages be led on,


natura lly and unconsciously to develop themselves for theirfuture.

THE SCOUTMASTER'S SHARE

So much for the lines on which a boy can be practically pre-pared through Scouting for making a career.

But this only prepares him. It is still in the power of hisScoutmaster to give him further help to making that career asuccessful one.

First, by showing the lad ways by which he can perfect thesuperficial instruction received as a Scout; whereby, for instance,he can develop his hobbies into handicrafts. The Scoutmaster canshow him where to get higher technical education, how to getscholarships or apprenticeships, how to train himself for par-ticular professions, how to invest his savings, how to apply for

jobs, and so on.Secondly, by himself knowing the different kinds of employ-

ment agencies and how to use them, the terms of service in vari-ous professions, the Scoutmaster can give the lad invaluable help,by advising him, on his knowledge of his qualifications, as to whichline of life he is best fitted for.

All this means that the Scoutmaster must himself look aroundand inform himself fully on these and like points. By taking alittle trouble himself he can make successful lives for many of his boys.

It is encouraging to a lad, even if he is only an errand boy,to know that if he does his errands so well that his employer feelshe could not get a better boy, he is safely on the road to promotion.But he must stick to it, and not be led aside by fits of disinclina-

tion or annoyance; if he gives way to these he will never succeed.Patience and perseverance win the day. "Softly, softly, catcheemonkey."

Employment

The Scoutmaster, by watching and studying the individualcharacter and ability of each boy, can to some extent recognisethe line of life for which he is best fitted. But he should realisethat the question of employment is one for the parents and theboy himself to decide.

It is then a matter of consultation with the parents, and forcautioning them against putting their square peg of a son intoa round hole of employment for the sake of immediate monetaryreturn. Get them and the boy himself to look well ahead and to




see ulterior possibilities that lie open to him, provided that hisstart is made on the right lines.

Here it is important to discriminate between those employ-ments which offer a future to the boy and those which lead tonothing—so-called "blind alley" jobs. These latter often bring ingood money for the time being, to increase the weekly income of the family, and are, therefore, adopted for the boy by the parentsregardless of the fact that they give no opening to him for a man'scareer afterwards.

Those which promise a future need careful selection with re-gard to the lad's capabilities, and they can be prepared for, whilehe is yet a Scout. A skilled employment is essentially better thanan unskilled one for the boy's future success in life. But care

should be taken that consideration of this question is not left untilthe time is past for a boy to conform to the standards and rulesfor entering into the desired career.


L

A Scout is active in doing good, not passive in being good.

IV. SERVICE TO OTHERS

THE ATTRIBUTES which we have so far been studying, astending to make our boys into manly, healthy, happy working

citizens, are, to a great extent, selfish ones designed for the goodof the individual. We now come to the fourth branch of Scouttraining, through which, by developing his outlook, the boy givesout good to others.

SelfishnessIf I were asked what is the prevailing vice in the world I

should say—Selfishness. You may not agree with this at first sight,but look into it and I believe you will come to the same conclu-sion. Most crimes, as recognised by law, come from the indulgenceof selfishness, from a desire to acquire, to defeat, or to wreak vengeance. The average man will gladly give a contribution tofeed the poor and will feel satisfied that he has then done hisduty, but he is not going to dock himself of his own food andgood wine to effect a saving for that purpose.

Selfishness exists in a thousand different ways. Take, for in-stance, party politics. Men here get to see a question, which ob-viously has two sides to it, exactly as if there were only onePossible side, namely, their own, and they then get to hate another

Service to Others 63



man who looks upon it from the other side. The result may leadmen on to commit the greatest crimes under high-sounding names.In the same way, wars between nations have come about fromneither party being able to see the other's point of view, beingobsessed entirely by their own interests. Strikes, too, and lock-outs are frequently the outcome of developed selfishness. In manycases, employers have failed to see that a hard-working manshould, in justice, get a share of the goods of the world in returnfor his effort, and not be condemned to perpetual servitude simplyto secure a certain margin of profits for the shareholders. On theother hand, the worker has to recognise that without capital therewould be no work on a large scale, and there can be no capital

without some return to the subscribers for the risks they face insubscribing.In one's newspaper every day one sees examples of selfishness

when one reads the letters of these small-minded men who, at everylittle grievance, rush headlong to "write to the papers."

And so it goes on, down to the children playing their gamesin the streets; the moment that one is dissatisfied at not gettinghis share of winning he abruptly leaves the scene remarking: "Ishan't play any more!" The fact that he upsets the fun of theothers does not appeal to him—unless it be satisfying to his spite.

To Eradicate Selfishness —The Good Turn Habit

The Scouting practices tend in a practical way to educate theboy out of the groove of selfishness. Once he becomes charitablehe is well on the way to overcome or to eradicate the danger of this habit.

The Promis e tha t a Scout make s on joining has as its firstpoint: "To do my duty to God." Note that it does not say "To beloyal to God," since this would merely be a state of mind, but todo something, which is the positive, active attitude.

The main method in the Boy Scout Movement is to give someform of positive training rather than merely to inculcate negativeprecepts, since the boy is always ready to do rather than to digest.Therefore, we put into his activities the practice of Good Turnsin his daily life as a foundation of future goodwill and helpful-ness to others. The religious basis underlying this is common toall denominations, and we, therefore, interfere with the formof none.

The boy can then realise better that part of his "Duty toGod" is to take care of and develop as a sacred trust those talentswith which God has equipped him for his passage through this

64 Service to Others

life; the body with its health and strength and reproductive pow-ers to be used in God's service; the mind with its wonderful reason-ing, memory and appreciation, which place him above the animalworld; and the soul, that bit of God which is within him—namely,Love, which can be developed and made stronger by continualexpression and practice. Thus we teach him that to do his Dutyto God means, not merely to lean on His kindness, but to do Hiswill by practising love towards one's neighbour.

The curious thing is that this duty of Service for Othersthrough Good Turns is the one to which Scouts rise with the full-est alacrity. On this seemingly small foundation (the giving up of small personal conveniences or pleasures in order to render ser-

vice) is built the char acter of self-sacrifice for others.The minor Good Turns which are part of the Scout's faith

are in themselves the first step. Nature study and making friendswith animals increase the kindly feeling within him and overcomethe trait of cruelty which is said to be inherent in every boy (al-

Scouting is a Brotherhood— ascheme which, in practice, dis-regards differences of class,creed, country and colour,through the undefinable spiritthat pervades it—the spirit of God's gentleman.

though, personally, I am not sure that it is so general as is sup-posed). From these minor Good Turns he goes on to lear n firstaid and help to the injured, and in the natural sequence of learn-ing how to save life in the case of accidents, he develops a senseof duty to others and a readiness to sacrifice himself in danger.This, again, leads up to the idea of sacrifice for others, for hishome, and for his country, thereby leading to patriotism and loy-a lty of a higher type than that of merely ecstatic flag-waving.

Service for the Community

The teaching of service is not merely a matter of teaching in




theory, but the development of two distinct phases—the incul-cation of the spirit of goodwill; and the provision of opportunityfor its expression in practice.

The teaching is mainly through example, and the Scoutmastergives exactly the right lead in his patriotic dedication of self tothe service of the boy, solely for the joy of doing it, and withoutthought of material reward.

The opportunity for practice is given by the Scoutmaster sug-gesting to his boys special service projects.

Public services offer the best opening for practical trainingin sense of duty to the community, patriotism and self-sacrificethrough expression.

The work of Scouts during peace and during wars in volun-tarily taking up arduous duties in service of their country is initself a proof of the keenness of the lads to do good work, and of their readiness to make themselves efficient where they see a goodobject. In this direction lies a powerful means of developing onpractical lines the ideal of citizenship.

As one specific example of public service might be mentionedBoy Scout Accident and Fire Service (Emergency Service) fortowns and villages. Such service is especially applicable to SeniorScouts, and acts as an attractive force to the older boy while giv-ing him public services to train for and to render.

The Troop is organised, equipped, and trained primarily forfire fighting, but with the further ability to deal with all kinds of accidents that, are possible in the neighbourhood, such, for in-stance, as: Street accidents; gas, chemical or other explosions;floods or inundations; electric accidents; railway accidents; fallen

trees or buildings; ice accidents; bathing or boating accidents;airplane crashes; etc.This would demand, in addition to the drill, rescue and first

aid required for fire work, knowledge and practice in methodsof extricating and rescuing, and rendering the proper first aid ineach class of work; such as: K nowle dge of gases and chemicals ;handling of boats, improvising rafts, use of life line; use of life-buoys, life saving in the water, artificial respiration; how to dealwith frightened animals; how to deal with electric live wires,burning liquids; etc.

In some cases it may be best for each Patrol to specialise ina particular form of accident, but generally if the Patrolspractise all in turn they arrive at complete efficiency for thewhole Troop.

Organisation for an accident would, however, confer specific

66 Service to Other s

duties on each Patrol, e.g., a Patrol of rescuers, first aiders, crowdholders, messengers, etc.

The variety of work to be done supplies a whole series of activities such as should appeal to the boys.

Frequent mobilizations to practise on improvised accidentsare essential to attaining efficiency and keenness.

As efficiency becomes evident public interest will be arousedprobably to a helpful degree. The scheme will then be recognisedas having a double value, an education for the boys, and a bless-ing for the community.

Ulterior Effect

The repression of self and development of that love and ser-

vice for others, which means God within, bring a total change of heart to the individual and with it the glow of true Heaven. Itmakes a different being of him.

The question becomes for him not "What can I get?", bu t"What can I give in life?"

No matter what may be his ultimate form of religion, thelad will have grasped for himself its fundamentals, and knowingthese through practising them he becomes a citizen with a widenedoutlook of kindliness and sympathy for his brother men.




With character and a smile the boy will overcome evils on his way.

T O S U MU PTTHEWHOLE O BJECTof our Scoutingis to seizethe boy's

character in its redhot stage of enthusiasm, and to weld it intothe right shape and to encourage and develop its individuality—so that the boy may educate himself to become a good man anda valuable citizen for his country.

By so doing we may hope to take a useful part in bringingstrength, both moral and physical, to the nation.

But in developing national aspirations there is always thedanger of becoming narrow and jealous of other nations. Unlesswe avoid this we bring about the very evil we are anxious toescape.

Fortunately in the Scout Movement we have Brother Scoutsorganised in almost every civilised country in the world, and wehave formed already the tangible nucleus of a World Brotherhood.And the potentialities of this are being supplemented by thewider development of the co-operative sister movement, theGirl Guides (Girl Scouts).

In every country the purpose of the Scouts' training isidentical, namely, efficiency for Service towards others; and withsuch an object in common, we can, as an International Brother-hood in Service, go forward and do a far-reaching work.

68 To Sum Up

In our training of the boy we develop the individual in bothspirit and efficiency to be an effective player in his national teamof citizenhood. Acting on the same principle in the case of a na-tion, we should try to develop the right spirit and efficiency forhelping that nation to work effectively in the team of nations.

If each, then, plays in its place, and "plays the game," therewill be greater prosperity and happiness throughout the world,there will be brought about at last that condition which has solong been looked for—of

Peace and Goodwill among men.

THE END

To Sum Up 69



BIBLIOGRAPHY

Scouting for Boys by Baden-Powell

The original edition of this book started Scouting.Contains many program ideas.

The Wolf Cub's Handbook by Baden-PowellContains a wealth of resource material.

B.-P.'s Life in Pictures

Colourful comic book format portrays the life andadventures of the Founder. Great for boys.

The Baden-Powell Story

On tape casette and 24-35mm black & white slides.An economical, audio-visual kit to assist leaders in puttingacross the development of our Movement and the life of the Founder. Cassette also contains three personal messagesby B.-P. taken from original and rare recordings.

Available through your council office or

Supply Services - Ottawa

Aids to Scoutmaster Ship

Documents

Transcript of Aids to Scoutmaster Ship